<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Addicted by ladysithlord</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23329939">Addicted</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladysithlord/pseuds/ladysithlord'>ladysithlord</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fallout 4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alcohol, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Brotherhood of Steel (Fallout), Cross-Posted on Wattpad, F/M, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Recovery, Rough Sex, Secret Relationship, Sex, Spoilers, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt, The Institute (Fallout), Withdrawal, all the feelings, vintage</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 06:01:44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>29,041</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23329939</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladysithlord/pseuds/ladysithlord</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After the fall of the Institute the General of the Minutemen, Lila Smith, has gone missing without a trace. Once she is found by the Brotherhood, it is obvious that she has changed. Chems have ravaged her system and mind and she is not the strong woman that Elder Arthur Maxson remembers her to be. With nothing left for her in the wastelands, will she find something to give her meaning and turn her life around?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Arthur Maxson/Female Sole Survivor, Arthur Maxson/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>54</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. You Found Me</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Elder Arthur Maxson awake shortly after dawn, the pink-orange light of the sunrise leaking into the windows of his quarters, as it did every morning. He followed the same routine day-in and day-out. He rolled out of bed and performed some quick stretches, limbering himself for the day ahead before heading across his room to check his terminal. As he sat in his office chair he read through the messages from the Citadel that had come in during his slumber. After sending off a few response he stood and got dressed for the day, trading his grey sweatpants in for his black flight suit and his brown battle coat before returning to the Terminal to continue some work.</p>
<p>Breakfast was brought at the same day daily, about an hour after he woke-up. A light rap came at the door and he snapped his head up to meet the eyes of a small Squire poking his head in, carrying in his hands a tray of breakfast from the mess hall aboard the Prydwen. Arthur waved the pre-teen in. The scampy boy quickly placed the tray on the table, gave the Elder a curt salute and mumbled 'Ad Victorium' before he vanished out the door to continue his duties.</p>
<p>This morning was like every other morning on the Prydwen, every morning for the past month or so. Every morning since the fall of the Institute. Once the task had been completed Arthur had expected to be called back to the Citadel immediately. However, the Elders had different ideas. After the Institute was taken care of many rogue synths wandered the seemingly endless wasteland that was the Commonwealth. This meant that the people still needed protection, which was part of the reason Arthur and the Brotherhood had been sent to the Commonwealth to begin with. The Eastern Chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel was extending their stay until most, hopefully all, rogue synths were properly dealt with. There was also interest in establishing a permanent Eastern Chapter when the Prydwen returned to the Capital Wasteland. </p>
<p>The Commonwealth was mostly unchanged after the Institute was destroyed, except maybe a bit more harmony existed between the remaining factions: the Brotherhood and the Minutemen. The Railroad had seemed to cease existence after their leader, Desdemona, had been killed. Arthur shook his head at the memory, moving his thoughts elsewhere. There was no time to dwell on past quarrels and foes when there was so much to deal with in the present. </p>
<p>The Minutemen had proved to be useful allies and they continued to work with them in keeping the wastelands safer for the citizens of the Commonwealth. Colonel Garvey kept in touch regularly via terminal messages and short relays or holotapes passed between soldiers. Garvey had mostly taken over the role of General. Surprisingly, no one actually knew where the General had gone. Shortly after orchestrating the demise of the Institute the General's visits and communications became less and less frequent, less and less detailed, less and less like the General. At some point Garvey had taken over and communications had resumed to normal between the two factions. Arthur didn't think much of it, the General was likely taking a break to recuperate from taking down the Commonwealth's biggest enemy, as was deserved. </p>
<p>Arthur made his way to the flight deck, looking out over the horizon and down at the Airport. He could make out bodies bustling around as another day of protecting the people began. Off in the distance he could see the outline of a Vertibird returning to the Prydwen, the sound of its blades joining in shortly after it came into sight. Likely Recon Squad Upsilon, he thought to himself. He turned from the window and returned to his quarters, knowing that before too long the Paladin in charge of Upsilon would be coming to him with news of their quest. Regularly, Recon Squads were sent out to check, or in some cases re-secure, areas that the Brotherhood and Minutemen frequented. Trade routes between settlements were kept clear as they were of importance in keeping good alliances. All the updates usually consisted of current statuses of settlers and resources, any unwanted inhabitants encountered and how they were dealt with, and if any synths had been extracted.</p>
<p>Like clockwork, Arthur heard the banging and hissing of Power Armour against the walkway to his office. Just as he was readying himself to notify the Paladin to enter, she barged in, out of breath and slightly pale. Quickly she saluted the Elder.</p>
<p>"Sorry to interrupt Elder, I wouldn't do so unless the situation was urgent."<br/>"So, I assume there is an urgent situation." Arthur responded blatantly in his gravelly voice. The Paladin nodded her head quickly. <br/>"I need you in the medical bay, immediately." she spoke quickly before turning on her heel and out the door just assuming Arthur was close behind.  </p>
<p>Arthur threw himself out of his seat and followed behind the Paladin. He assumed one of his soldiers must be horribly injured for a Paladin to seek his help so readily. </p>
<p>Upon entering the medical bay he saw Knight-Captain Cade and the remainder of Upsilon crowded around one of the beds. Accounting for all the members of Upsilon in front of him, Arthur became very confused about the urgency of this situation. If one of his soldiers was not hurt in battle, why was he called upon in such earnest? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Just then, Cade turned and made eye contact with Arthur, rushing over to him. </p>
<p>“Elder, I’m sorry to call upon you so suddenly, but I wanted to notify you immediately of the situation at hand.” The doctor said quickly and partially out of breath, voice shaking slightly. </p>
<p>Arthur raised his hands and looked Cade in the eyes “Please Cade, calm down. Now, update me on what’s going on.” Arthur spoke in a cool, even tone, hoping to calm the man down. </p>
<p>After a couple deep breaths Cade turned back towards the bed while speaking to Arthur. </p>
<p>“It appears that she may be in some sort of coma, though we aren’t quite sure. It could be due to the injuries she has sustained or something else entirely. Upsilon notes that she was unconscious when they found her, but she continues breathing and her heart is still beating, thought not at optimal levels. We hope to keep her under until we find out what has happened and how to treat her.” </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Still confused Arthur raised an eyebrow at Cade. </p>
<p>“I’m sorry, maybe I missed this, but who is “she”?” Arthur pointed to the bed where Upsilon was still gathered, looking on. He had yet to see who was on the bed and why this was any of his concern. Cade nodded his head slowly and waved Arthur over toward the bed. </p>
<p>As they got closer to the bed, the team moved away slowly, making way for the Elder and Cade. Once Arthur could see the body on the bed he stopped fully in his tracks. </p>
<p>On the bed laid the form of a woman, so small, so thin. Her skin appeared almost translucent in the overhead lighting. This woman was simply a shell of what she used to be, but he recognized the auburn hair anywhere. Her faced was splashed with light freckles that had dimmed in colour, hinting that she may have been out of sunlight for quite some time. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Arthur was almost surprised that the Recon Squad had been able to identify her, but then he realized the one distinguishing feature of the woman. Anyone who had met this woman would know her from this one feature. Without it, he was sure Upsilon would have walked by her, thinking she was just another dying settler in the wastes. </p>
<p>That one identifying feature, the thing that gave away to the woman’s identity, was the bright blue Vault suit that she adorned no matter where she went, with the gold stitched number of ‘111’ on the back. The Sole Survivor. The General of the Minutemen. </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Life of the Party</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Arthur shook his head, still confused but also panicked. He turned quickly to Upsilon, expecting answers.<br/>
“Where did you find her?” he asked in a sharp tone. The Paladin stepped forward.<br/>
“In an abandoned listening post in the North, Elder. We stopped to rest and re-fuel before heading back to the Airport. We found her sprawled out on one of the bunks inside. We called a vertibird immediately after finding her.”<br/>
“Were there any signs of Raider or Gunner interference?” he asked, wondering who had done this to her. There could be no way she would do this to herself. The Paladin shook her head.<br/>
“No Elder. There were no bodies in or around the perimeter of the bunker, nor did she seem to be creating a defence of any sort. She was there along with a bag of her belongings.” The Paladin then pointed to the foot of the bed where a dirty brown satchel was sitting. </p>
<p>Maxson heaved a sigh from his lungs. He looked to Cade.<br/>
“Treat her. Do anything you can. I will notify the Minutemen immediately. I’m sure they want to know her whereabouts.” Cade gave a curt nod and began dismissing Recon Squad Upsilon as none of them appeared to be in a state requiring medical care. <br/>
“Paladin. Make sure to include accounts from all members of your team in your log of this mission. I will receive the log whenever you finish.” Arthur spoke calmly to the woman. The Paladin gave a salute and a nod before heading off, breaking from Elder Maxson as he made way back to his office. He shut and locked the bay door behind him as he sat in the chair in front of his terminal, contemplating how to word this urgent message to the Minutemen.</p>
<p>************ </p>
<p>The last time Maxson had seen the General was at the party that was thrown at the airport mere days after the Institute was destroyed. The Brotherhood and the Minutemen had come together to celebrate their joined victory and the birth of a new, safer Commonwealth. The liquor was flowing freely and for the first time in a long time, there was a general ease amongst the factions. She had been surrounded by her fellow Minutemen, radiating a positive energy along with a smile. She had a glass of Bobrov Brother’s vodka in hand, taking gentle sips from it periodically while listening to the chatter of her friends.<br/>
“Lila!” Piper, the sassy reporter from Diamond City, had called to her across the yard, where a radio was playing the smooth music of Diamond City Radio and small groups were dancing.</p>
<p>Sure enough, Lila walked quickly over to the make-shift dance floor, her soft auburn ponytail bouncing with her body. Her and Piper began to sway to the music, giggling at their foolish and uncoordinated moves. The two of them were almost inseparable, it made him wonder what they were going to do now that the Institute was gone. For now, he knew the two of them were happy being the life of the party. Arthur leaned against the box of supplies beside him, dragging on a cigar, watching her from the distance. A few seconds later her eyes lifted to meet his across the yard. Her eyes changed colour depending on the light. In the dim lighting of the party, they appeared grey, but he knew in the bright sunshine they were more of a blue tone. Once their eyes met she gave him a small smile and a wave. He nodded back, letting the tiniest smile slip onto the corner of his lips. </p>
<p>************</p>
<p>What in the hell had happened to the Sole Survivor of Vault 111 since that night? This question haunted Arthur as he proofread his message to the Minutemen.</p>
<p>
  <em>From the terminal of Elder Arthur Maxson Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel Eastern Chapter</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>February 20, 2289 </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>To Colonel Preston Garvey or whom this may concern, </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>The General of the Minutemen, Lila Smith, was found during the early hours of the morning by our Recon Squad Upsilon while on mission in the North of the Commonwealth. She was airlifted to the Prydwen and is receiving the best care available. Will update when she awakens or if status changes.</em>
</p>
<p>Arthur leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes as he rubbed his temples. Informing next of kin of injuries, or worse, was his least favourite part of his position as Elder. He was the bearer of bad news to so many families who lost loved ones to the horrors of the wastelands. However, it came with the job, there wasn’t much he could do he reminded himself. Arthur rose from his desk, walking from his office to the command deck. Once there he looked out at the Commonwealth below, the rays of the afternoon sun now fully dousing the terrain in light. At moments like this, he almost forgot that out there the world had been torn apart by atomic bombs and nuclear fallout. At that moment, the Commonwealth appeared to be forgiving and harmless. However, he, and everyone else, knew otherwise.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. I’m Okay</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The majority of the day was spent meeting with the higher-ups aboard the Prydwen; receiving updates from every sector that could provide them. The day as a whole was tedious, involving mostly Arthur nodding along in complacency while his mind wandered elsewhere, mostly to Lila’s status. It was shortly before his evening meal when the next knock arrived at his door. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Looking up from the days records his strained eyes met Knight-Captain Cade’s. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Knight-Captain,” Arthur said sternly as he watched Cade enter the room. Arthur stacked the documents he had scattered on his desk into a neat pile as Cade crossed the metal floor. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I assume you have an update.” Arthur stated as he leaned back in his chair, placing his hands at the base of his neck as he tried his best to relax. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Cade gave a gentle nod, his expression completely unreadable. Arthur couldn’t tell if the news he was about to deliver was good or bad, or worse. As a usual pessimist, Arthur feared for the worst. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Her heart-rate and breathing have become stable. She is still under heavy doses of anesthetic while we continue to examine her.”</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Is that all?” Arthur asked, slightly irritated that this was as far as they had gotten in the run of the day. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Not quite.” Cade’s voice trailed off, his gaze falling away from the Elder’s. “We discovered something quite shocking, well quite shocking from the last time I had examined the General.” Arthur gave Cade a look, an indication of his annoyance and for him to just spit it out already. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“It appears that Mrs.Smith has become quite addicted to several varieties of chems. Mainly Jet and Psycho. Whether this is recreational use or serving other purposes we are still unsure. Despite her comatose condition her body still seems to be going through a withdrawal.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Chems? The one word made his throat clench and his stomach drop. That was not like Lila. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">************</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After several rounds of dancing with Piper, Arthur watched as Lila and her walked back towards where the drinks were flowing freely. Even from across the make-shift dance floor he could see the light flush on her cheeks from dancing. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur continued to keep his distance, attempting to remain as professional as possible around his soldiers. Someone should stay relatively sober in the off chance that an attack may occur. That was Arthur, always on high alert. The Commonwealth doesn’t sleep. The Commonwealth stops for no one.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He was deeply lost in thought when a cup being jutted into his face snapped him back to reality. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The person connected to the hand offering him the cup was none other than Lila. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I think you need this more than I do.” she said in a light and joking tone, eyeing him with a sly grin. He took the drink slowly from her hand. He didn’t care what was in it, he was going to drink it no matter what. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I believe we are both in need of some celebration, General.” he replied with a slight laugh in his tone as he tapped her cup with his before he took a quick swig, the vodka leaving a warm trail down his throat. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She turned her eyes back toward the groups surrounding the dance floor. He turned his gaze to her face, drinking in the pools that were her endless blue eyes, accounting for every freckle on the bridge of her nose. Something was off about her eyes, he couldn’t place it...she must be tried he figured. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I know it doesn’t mean much,” she started looking down and swirling the liquid in her cup “but I wanted to thank you for your help, well yours and the Brotherhood’s, over the last several months. We couldn’t pull this off without you guys.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“We were all working for the greater good against the greatest evil. It was our pleasure to fight alongside you and your men.” he spoke stoically. He wasn’t about to let her feel like the Brotherhood deserved all the credit. The Minutemen has been an integral part of the mission. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“In all seriousness Elder, any help your men or the Brotherhood need let the Minutemen know. We are indebted to you.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Just as he opened his mouth to respond Piper called out to her friend again, Lila whipping her gaze to Piper and then back to Arthur. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Duty calls.” she chuckled as she started to move away from him. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Wait!” He called, a bit sharply, though he knew this may be his only opportunity tonight to ask. His hand grabbed hers and pulled her back slightly. She turned to look at him, auburn hair whipping across her shoulder.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Are you okay?” he asked her softly. These past few days had been difficult for her, in many ways, and anyone who near her would know that. They may have fell the Institute but she also had to lose her son, the only remaining blood she had on the planet. In addition, men were lost in the battle to defeat the Institute, including some of her Minutemen. Their force was so small, and close knit. She had personally known the men she had lost, knew their names, where they came from, what they did, if they had families. All that on top of the physical exertion of fighting in the actual battle was more than enough reason for her to need a break from it all. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila let a small smile escape across her face, giving his hand the gentlest of squeezes. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m okay.” she replied softly before letting his hand slip through hers and trailing off to join Piper. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur now knew that the “I’m okay” response from her was a facade and that deep down the poor woman was suffering. Suffering so deeply that she seemed to think that chems were the only way to cure her pain. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Burn</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Burning.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">All she felt was burning.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">From her finger tips, to the roots of each hair follicle on her body’s length, to the very tips of her toes.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Fire.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It felt exactly like fire. Her skin felt scorched. This is what she imagined ghoulification felt like when those bombs dropped and some people didn’t have a chance to escape. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">A fever? An illness? Her sub-conscious had no idea what was going on.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her mind swam frantically, like a fish trapped in a net. Why did she feel damp all over? Sweat. She realized she was sweating profusely from each pore in her body. Why wouldn’t it stop?She swore she could feel it coming out of each and every pore. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She was vaguely aware of her surroundings. There were many metallic echoes in her head, like she was in the hull of a pre-war submarine. But there was no way that was where she was. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">God damn why did she rely on those Chems so hard? That hit of Ultra-Jet had hit her HARD. Like she was hit by a truck. She remembered taking it, but nothing else after. Just an inhale and then blackness. And blackness still. Where was she at to begin with? Sanctuary? Diamond City? Vault 111? She honestly couldn’t begin to remember, and part of her really didn’t care.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">God that burning sensation was horrific. She needed to open her eyes and find out where she was, maybe then this burning would stop. She tried to fight it as much as possible, but she couldn’t open her eyes, couldn’t move her body. It was like she was locked in a bunch of cement. She wanted to panic, wanted to scream, but couldn’t. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">What is this? It was deeply unsettling. A hit of Jet would take the anxious edge off, she knew that. She just had no way to get to it. She continued to fight through it. Slowly the burning faded away and slowly she slipped back into nothingness as she continued to hear the metallic noises of the outside world. The noises faded gently until...nothing at all. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her heart skipped a beat. She looked down at her right hand. A tingle spreading from their tips and up her arm. She met the eyes of the man who’s hand was in hers. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur Maxson. Those blue eyes sent tiny shivers down her neck as their gazes were locked together. She felt her neck and cheeks heat up gently. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He had just asked her if she was “okay”. What kind of question was that? She thought briefly to herself. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She had awoken just over a year ago in a cryogenic chamber, in which she had been tricked into by the sick company that was Vault-Tec. During that time she watched her own husband get murdered as a formidable, and unknown, foe stole her son. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After being forcefully unfrozen and slowly piecing together what was going on and what had happened, she began her adventures across a vast wasteland, a very vague representation of the world she had once known, in search of her son. After months of travelling, fighting, negotiating, helping others out, scraping by, and hoop-jumping she finally found him. But then she had to deal with the fact that he had aged 60 years in her absence. He wasn’t baby Shaun anymore. Her beloved son who had his fathers eyes and her auburn flash of hair who had cuddled into the crook of her arm so many years ago. He was grown-up, aged, and brainwashed Shaun; not her son. If things couldn’t be any worse he was the head of the most feared thing in the Commonwealth: the Institute. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Was she okay? Was she really? </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She snapped back to reality. Arthur’s eyes roving her face while he waited for a reply. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">A smile played on her lips as she gave his hand a squeeze. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m okay.” She lied softly before she walked away, leaving Arthur Maxson to himself, but also leaving behind any inch of sanity she felt like she had left. She would have to fake it for the rest of the night. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Of course she wasn’t okay, who was she trying to fool? </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The Sole Survivor everyone had come to recognize was about to fold in on herself, little did anyone know.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I’m so happy there is a small collection of people so excited about this fic! I can’t wait to share it all with you and thank you for the support :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Blinding Lights</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila looked up at the ceiling, tears stinging in her eyes. The lights above began burning her eyes so she shut them tightly, a few small tears trickling past the barricade. After Arthur had left Cade had changed some of her dressings and re-administered some less aggressive and less potent pain killers. Once that was finished he had left to let her rest. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Rest wasn’t coming easy however. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She was restless, she was still in pain, she was still fevered. She was going through withdrawal. Her throat felt like she had swallowed 100 rusty nails. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">So many thoughts raced through her head, she tried to calm herself with cleansing breathes; just calm enough that she could sort through some of the thoughts. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">First thought: Had Arthur told the Minutemen about her condition? She could almost guarantee he had. He could be so petty when he was angry, she knew that. Once she had broke contact with the Minutemen, the Brotherhood of Steel would be the number one place that they should start looking for her. That being said, she was about 99% sure that they would have received news by now. But what did he tell them? That’s something she wouldn’t know unless she questioned Arthur, and that wasn’t happening. Not any time soon anyways. The thought of that conversation alone made her anxious, made her eyes sting, and made her regret so much. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Second thought: How the hell did she get on the Prydwen? She had asked that question when Arthur and Cade had both been there but no one answered her question. She assumed someone had found her and reported back to ask what should be done about her. Another question she wouldn’t know the answer to until later. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Third thought: How could she get Arthur’s disappointed look out of her mind? She recognized the clench of his jaw and the burning gaze of his ice blue eyes, boring into her existence. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He must have seen her arms. Lila looked down at them then, observing the track marks left by the Psycho, her eyes shutting tightly as fresh tears threatened to spill over onto her freckled cheeks. She choked them back and let out a long breath. There was no easy way to explain the past month to Arthur, and she knew he would be cornering her for an explanation at his earliest opportunity. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Fourth thought: Where the fuck was her bag at? Her eyes darted around the room, looking frantically for the brown satchel which carried all her usual travel supplies. Across the room, against a storage locker, sat her bag. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Could she get to it? She lifted the blanket, seeing that her legs were mostly clear of injuries, minus a few minor scraps and bruises that constantly plagued her porcelain skin. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">To balance, and support, herself she grabbed onto the IV pole, where she was given a constant supply of fluids and meds. Slowly, she lifted herself off the bed. Despite being drowsy, she was bound and determined to get to her bag.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She smirked at Arthur as he pulled away from her attacking bite on his bottom lip. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“But you know I love disobeying the rules. We wouldn’t be here if I didn’t...” she spoke softly, sexy tones intertwined in her voice. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">A smile broke across the Elder’s face, a smile that made her stomach knot up in anticipation. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her eyes fell from his gaze, a light heat spreading along her cheeks and neck. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Are you going to punish me for my misdemeanours, Elder?” she let the words slip out of her mouth in the lightest of whispers. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila knew full well that this would ignite a fire within the dominate Elder, a fire that could not be easily tamed. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Just as she had expected, he set her down in one fluid motion while turning her to face away from him, bending her over the edge of a small storage crate, her upper body rested against the cool metal. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The seconds of lingering silence allowed her to prepare for the heavy spank he placed on her right ass cheek. He repeated the same thing on the left. Each time she let out a soft moan, biting her lip to resist any other noises escaping.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur turned her back toward him in another quick motion, before stepping back slowly, his eyes mentally undressing her. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I think you know the punishment for these atrocities,” he spoke firmly to her, a fire burning behind his cool eyes. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila nodded slowly before approaching him and shoving him down into a seated position on top of another crate. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Slowly, she stepped backwards from him. While doing so she slowly shimmied her large, dark blue ilitary coat off of her shoulders and let it fall to the floor. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Next she unclipped her chest plate and slid it off along with her other armour covering her upper body. She bit the top of the middle finger of the glove on her right hand. Pulling finger by finger she removed her glove, then doing the same on the left before setting them aside. Once she was down to the plain white button up and green pants below all the armour, she met Arthur’s gaze. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">In a quick motion she pulled her auburn hair out of its secure ponytail and whipped the hair around her shoulders, letting it flounce gently. Her delicate hands trailed down her neck, goosebumps radiating out from there.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her fingers mingled with the buttons on her shirt before slowly unbuttoning the shirt from top to bottom. She left the shirt hanging open as she shimmied off her boots and moved to the buckle of her pants.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">From her frequent glances at Arthur, she could tell he was hot and bothered by her little show. Even in the dim light she could make out the outline in his pants, causing her to blush gently. His eyes never stopped examining every part of her body. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Once her buckle was undone, she turned her back to him. Effortlessly, she shimmied the pants down herself. Letting her round ass release from the pants slowly, exposing her rather modest Brotherhood issue undergarments. That was one thing she always missed from Pre-War, nice and pretty underwear. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">In the same position, and with her pants on the ground at her ankles, she shimmied the shirt off her freckle-splayed shoulders. She exposed her soft skin and gave him a soft smile from over her shoulder. She could be a tease when she wanted to be. Slowly she turned around, letting the shirt fall off her arms. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila was now fully exposed, minus her bra and underwear. She placed her eyes on Arthur, waiting for orders. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“To me. Now.” The words were stated roughly, his voice bubbling with passion. His words alone could work wonders. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She finally reached her bag after a long trek across the room. It all took way more effort than she could have imagined. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Gently she lowered herself to a squatting position, so she had easy access to the pockets. She knew exactly where it was. The front pocket was whipped open before she knew it. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila slowly pulled out the red inhaler, turning it over in her hand slowly. She knew the Jet would help her get back to sleep easily. But was it necessary? Was the risk worth it? The distraction of her inner monologue had been a much heavier distraction than expected. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">A shadow loomed in front of her. Her heart jumped into her throat and seemed to stop. In that moment she wanted to drop dead on the spot. Her gaze didn’t have to raise to know who was looking over her, but she looked up anyways. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Blue fire met her watery blues. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. There She Goes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“What in the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Arthur’s voice vibrated behind clenched teeth.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila’s eyes were completely vacant of emotion for a moment, totally frozen. No doubt she was trying to come up with something to say. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">While she sat there, unmoving, Arthur felt his stomach knotting up into a ball, burning with the anger he felt toward her in that moment. How dare she? Him and his men had taken care of her and now, after being awake for no more than a few hours, she was trying to take some Jet.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When she finally moved and spoke she stumbled over her words, he could see tears prickling the edge of her eyes. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I....you know....it’s...it’s not what it looks like...” she spoke soft, barely above a whisper. From her squatting position she settled herself on the ground, tired from her dazed trek across the room. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You have two minutes to explain to me how this ‘isn’t what it looks like’.” Arthur spoke firmly. He wanted answers and he wanted them now. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After the words left his lips she broke down. Tears fell down her soft cheeks as her breath came in short, hiccupy gasps. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He watched on, feeling somewhat bad but still wanting, no needing, an explanation from her.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila kept her gaze away from his as she spoke in as even a tone as possible, which proved harder than expected between her roller coaster emotions and her body’s withdrawal process. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“After...everything that happened,” adding sting to the first sentence “I left the airport and ventured into the wasteland, trying to escape everything. I guess everything caught up to me...” she trailed off, still not meeting his eyes, as she wiped her cheeks gently. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“What kind of explanation is that? That tells me nothing.” his voice started to raise, slightly annoyed by her avoidance of the question he had asked. “I want to know what the fuck you have been doing for the past month that resulted in you ending up like this. Addicted to chems and in the worst shape possible. Leaving your men without a leader. I can’t believe you would be so-“ </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Before he could finish his sentence, she snapped. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Enough!” she yelled, now letting her eyes meet his. As he stared back at her he could feel the passion and anger behind her glare.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I had spent months looking for my son. Months. Only to find out that, oh wait, he’s the biggest douche in the Commonwealth. Running the most feared organization in existence, while he replaces people’s family members with synths under everyone’s noses. But it’s for the ‘greater good’ he claims. So I have to make the lovely to decision to blow him to bits so that the Institute isn’t a threat anymore. Oh, and prior to all of this, I get to watch my husband get murdered. That really got me off. So, when all was said and done, while everyone around me is rejoicing, I feel more alone than I ever have. I have no one.” He was in utter, stunned silence as she spoke. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“No one.” she repeated. “Everyone got what they wanted, the Institute was destroyed. What else am I good for now? Who needs me? No one. Who do I have left? No one. So what, I did some chems because I was sick and tired of feeling pain, loss, and rejection all the time. I’m sick of feeling...of feeling so alone...” her speech sputtered out as her voice cracked, giving way to a new wave of tears. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He watched as the Sole Survivor cradled herself, knees pulled tight to her chest and arms wrapped around them as tears streamed silently down her cheeks. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur bent over and scooped her up, bridal style. With his foot, he scooted her IV pole over with them to the bed. Softly, he laid her back into the military issue mattress. Eventually her sobs started to subside before giving way to a peaceful slumber. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After pulling the sheets up over her, he watched her as her chest fell and rose as she slept. Why did his heart ache for her? He shouldn’t feel bad, yet here he was. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">He let out a heavy sigh and turned to leave the room. </span>Just as he was about to walk out the door he met Knight-Captain Cade.</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Is it possible to get the General moved?” he asked the grey haired man. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“It would still be risky for her recovery to move her back to the Castle Elder. I don’t want to compromise her progress.” the doctors advised. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I didn’t mean back to the Castle.” the Elder spoke firmly as Cade gave him a questioning look. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I want her moved to my quarters. I will reside in Paladin Danse’s old quarters in the meantime. The General needs her own private area to properly recover and I offer up my quarters for that purpose.” </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Heaven</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When Lila cracked open her eyes the next day the first thing she noticed was that her surroundings had changed yet again. There were no longer a row of beds on either side of her. Now she was in a smaller, private room. There was a terminal on a desk in the room and a few other odds and ends. The familiar hum of engines gave away that she was still on the Prydwen. Leaning up on her elbow she got a better look at her surroundings. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It was then that she realized where she was, with a sickening lurch in her stomach. This was Elder Maxson’s quarters. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila panicked slightly, wondering how she had gotten here. But also, where had Arthur gone? </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As if on cue, there was a loud bang on the door before it creaked open to reveal Arthur sticking his head around the corner. Their eyes met as he slowly walked into the room and towards the bed where she was laying. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila reached Arthur and he immediately placed his hands on her hips and pulled her body to his own. As their lips met she could feel the warmth of his body against hers, her body now chilled to the air around them. Closeness was something she constantly craved, more so since the events of the past few days. After having to kill her own son, she craved closeness and belonging. She wanted to be wanted by anyone who would have her. But Arthur...well he held a special place in her heart, she couldn’t place why or when but he was there. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She pulled away slowly from Arthur’s lips, her eyes borrowing into his. Her hands went from his neck, down to his chest, toying with the zipper of his flight suit. Arthur gave a soft nod of his head, signalling for her to continue. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Slowly, she pulled the zipper down until it reached his hips. Her hand pushed back the fabric from his shoulders and off of his arms, letting it hang loosely around his hips. Her hands traced circles across his chest, teasing him softly. His chest was covered in soft, dark hair; small scars littered across his chest from the shrapnel of wars past. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur stood from the crate and turned, allowing him to scoop her up and replace her on the crate where he had just sat. He ravaged her neck with kisses, his beard scratching at her bare, sensitive skin. A soft moan left her lips as her head rolled back, exposing more of her neck for him to devour.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">His strong hands travelled to her back, unhooking her bra and pulling it off her arms, exposing her heavy breasts to the cool night air. Her nipples hardened against the breeze rolling through the storehouse. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur looked down, taking in her milky, smooth skin, placing his hands back onto her hips. He pulled her hips close to him on the edge of the crate, allowing Lila to feel the bulge growing behind the confines of his now loose flight suit. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila started to chew softly on the skin where his neck met his shoulders, evoking a soft groan from the Elder, triggering something within him. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur pushed his flight suit down violently, unleashing his hard member from its confines. One of his hands pulled aside her underwear, as the other pushed his tip gently against her entrance. A breath hitched in Lila’s throat as his tip prodded softly at her wet entrance. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Tell me what you want.” The Elder whispered in her ear, nipping at her lobe softly. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Fuck me please,” she replied, her voice thick with passion and want, but soft in the warehouse air. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As the words left her lips, he thrusted into her as she gasped loudly with pleasure. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur pumped into her at a steady pace, barely allowing her to adjust to his depth and girth. Her hands clawed at the skin of his back. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">One of his hands grabbed at her breast, twisting her nipple between his index finger and thumb, causing Lila to groan louder. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Steady moans moved from her lips, as he held back his groans, biting into his lip as he sped up his pace. His hips rocking against her violently he felt her walls tighten against his hard member. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The closer she got to climaxing, the louder she got. Arthur took a hand and covered her mouth as he continued to fuck her, silencing her so the lingering crowd outside didn’t suspect anything. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila’s nails dug in deeper on the skin of his back, breaking the skin in spots, feeling herself getting closer to her release. She chased it like an addict chases their next high. Arthur’s hips bucked against her roughly as his right thumb rubbed at her clit gently, bringing her orgasm on strongly. His other hand released from her mouth, her moans escaping as she reached her peak. Within seconds of her walls tightening in ecstasy, Arthur pulled out, rubbing his shaft and expelling his seed onto her thigh. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Both of them breathed raggedly, damp foreheads pressed together as they tried to regain a balance in heart and lungs. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“God...” Lila sighed softly, shaking her head gently. “I love you.” she spoke softly, barely audible. But as the words left her lips she felt her core tighten. Did she just say that? Her heart stopped. Waiting for a reply from Arthur. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He slowly withdrew from their embrace, gazing at her stunned. The Elder bit down on his lip in thought, his eyes unable to meet hers. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Just another pause to say thanks for the kudos and hits :) <br/>But I also wanted to clarify, anything contained between two sets of 12 * is considered a flashback. I’m sure in most cases that is evident, but thought I would also mention it! <br/>Hope you are all having a good day &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Somebody That I Used To Know</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur sat on the bed, thinking of what to say to Lila. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“How did you sleep?” he asked pathetically. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila nodded her head slowly “Pretty good, as good as I could anyways. Obviously well enough that I didn’t notice being moved. Why am I in here though?” she asked, still slightly puzzled by why she was in the Elder’s quarters and not the medical bay. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I figured you would benefit from recovering in private, not with a bunch of other sick people around you, keeping you awake and such.” He spoke softly to her as he met her eyes. “I offered up my quarters for that purpose.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She felt her cheeks burning as his eyes met hers, turning her gaze away quickly and biting at her lip. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Well...thanks for that.” she responded, genuinely happy to be away from the other people in medical and from the nurses constant check-ins, though still not 100% comfortable being in his quarters. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Silence radiated out from them both, awkward and thick. Tension so thick between them that Lila was sure that anyone could walk in and sense it immediately. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila was the first to open her mouth </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Look, Elder Maxson-“</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You know you can just call me Arthur.” he said slightly annoyed by her using his formal title. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She continued, as if she hadn’t heard him correct her.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I want to apologize for my...behaviour and the mess that your soldiers found me in. I have been dealing with...well...a lot of shit.” she said, being as straightforward as possible. What was the point in covering up what had happened to her? All of it was pretty evident by just one look at her physical appearance compared to how she looked one short month ago. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur nodded slowly, though rage began to bubble within him he let her talk. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I was using before I went MIA. I just lost touch with myself, with my mission, with what was going on around me. I just...a lot hit me at once. I hadn’t had time to cope from the moment I woke up in the Vault until then,” she turned her head toward him, shrugging her shoulders, attempting to make the conversation as non-chalant as possible. This was something she wanted to get over as fast as possible and get off the Prydwen so she didn’t have to keep feeling guilty every time she saw him. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Wait,” Arthur met her gaze, piecing things together in his mind. “Does that mean that you were...using,” he hated to put it so simply, “that night of the party at the airport?”</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila heart stuttered, nervousness peaking in her chest. Should she be honest with him? Likely, because if she wasn’t he would find out sooner or later on his own accord and he would be twice as angry then. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Yes,” she replied simply. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Still fairly exposed to the cool warehouse air, Lila looked at Arthur, wondering if he was just going to ignore her. She clenched her jaw tightly as her heart pattered away irregularly. Perhaps he would just shrug it off like it was nothing? Or would he return her words? Did she care? Her mind was light and fluffy; whether it was from the sex or the hit of Jet she took as a confidence booster before waltzing in to meet Arthur still lingering in her system, she didn’t know. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After he zipped up his flight suit, Arthur handed her the Brotherhood issue bra he had removed from her earlier, rubbing at his neck with his other hand. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lila...listen,” his voice barely audible as he was scared of the reaction that would follow suit. It wasn’t that he didn’t feel similarly about the amazing, beautiful, unique woman sitting in front of him. Her body still glistening with beads of sweat from their pleasures, his seed still on her thigh. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“As the Elder of the Brotherhood, I can’t fraternize with another faction leader. I mean, not in a way that could potentially cause conflict of interests for the Brotherhood.” As the words left his mouth, he saw the heartbreak on her face instantly. His heart ached along with her, hating to have to do this. But he hid it so well, a talent he gained as his time as Elder. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“This,” he reached over and cupped her face gently. “What we are doing now, as long as no one knows, can continue for now.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“For now...” her voice trailed off, her head nodding slowly as tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. She shook her head and shoved his hands away, anger growing within her. She felt it deep in the pits of her stomach, churning, making her want to get sick. Fuck the Brotherhood. Fuck the rules. She knew she loved him and she thought he had loved her, or at least felt more towards her than military allegiance and sexual tension. Love trumps all, she had always believed, and she knew if he actually tried that things would work out. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Arthur that’s the dumbest excuse I’ve ever heard,” she said blatantly as she dressed herself, clearly upset about the situation.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He rolled his eyes as an exasperated sigh left his lips “You really don’t get it do you,” he said as he crossed his arms across his broad chest. It was unbelievable to him that she was trying to fight him on such things. He was the Elder. Matters of feelings, especially those towards leaders of outside factions, were off-limits and to be kept strictly business. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Well I thought I did,” she spoke roughly as she finished clipping her armour back on and picked up her coat, getting extremely angry by his obliviousness to her feelings. “I thought that maybe you would be willing to try and make this work, you know. But no, you can’t upset The Brotherhood or the stupid Elders. Make them happy before yourself, see how fulfilling your life is when you follow that path.” Her words biting at him like venom. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur could feel the rage building in himself, boiling up his throat and into his mouth, spilling over into volatile words that he threw back at her. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Really? I’m an Elder. My life fulfillment is to serve the Brotherhood. Let’s not forget that the Elders are the reason I’m here and if you can’t accept that this,” he gestured to their surroundings, indicating their privacy, but also their secretive rendezvous through the past months “is all we can really ever be then you can gladly move along. I will not risk my position so you can play house or try to replicate your pre-war life.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila’s heart snapped as those words left his mouth, angry and betrayed tears stinging her blue eyes as she forced her vision away from his to save some face. Not only had he insulted her feelings in the present, he had minimized and judged her pre-war life without even knowing about it. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her head nodded slowly, her heart breaking as she knew what had to be done.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Well, if that’s the case then, it was great while it lasted. If you need anything from the Minutemen, you should probably just contact Preston directly. I’ll only be remaining in contact at regular intervals as a General would.” She cleared her throat as she spoke, shoving her few lingering belongings in her pockets. She gave him one last longing look before shutting her eyes tightly, squeezing back the inescapable tears and giving a quick nod is his direction before leaving him behind in the warehouse for what, she could only assume, would be forever.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Obviously her previous assumption had been wrong as they sat in silence, mere feet away from each other now. The air between them had become completely stagnant with both of their thoughts recounting that night. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur stood abruptly from the bed, going to stand by the windows, his breath laboured as he confronted this new information. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila picked at her nails nervously, pulling at hangnails as she waited for him to either calm down or yell at her. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He kept his gaze out the window as he spoke </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“So then what? You just ran off into the Commonwealth? High as a kite for weeks on end?” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila sighed heavily. Though she knew her actions were stupid, immature, and dangerous she still wasn’t about to apologize for her feelings that led her to that point. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You make it sound like I betrayed the Brotherhood.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur whipped around, anger burning deep in his eyes. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You very well could have for all I know. You could have ran off to the Gunners, some raiders, or even the Railroad and spilt any intel you had.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila scoffed as she rolled her eyes, “You really think I would go out of my way to sell your precious secrets?”</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Who knows,” Arthur spat back. Deep down he knew he may regret the way he spoke but she needed to understand the seriousness of her actions. “I feel like I barely know you Lila. You aren’t who you were before.”</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She stood from the bed, despite still being woozy and sore from her injuries and lack of Chems and an IV strapped to her arm. “Who I was before? You mean before I sacrificed the only blood relation I had in this god forsaken hell hole so that everyone else could be safe? Yeah, that might change a person.”</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“That doesn’t excuse your actions or mean using Chems and running off is the answer to your problems. You’re staying put on the Prydwen until you’re stable. No leaving this room until I know you’re clean.”</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She crossed her arms around her chest </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Who are you? My father?” She scoffed as she stared at him.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur crossed the room in seconds, coming inches away from her. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Don’t provoke me Paladin. You want out of this world, trust in me that I can see to it if that’s the case.” he grumbled lowly before exiting the room and slamming the door behind him, leaving Lila standing in the middle of the room, just as crushed as she was that night in the warehouse. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Like We Used To</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila looked at her Pip-boy clock: 0145. With a groan she rolled over again, for the hundredth time that night. Her eyes stung from where tears had fallen relentlessly after Arthur had left the room. No doubt the skin of her cheeks was puffy and red from said tears. Her heart was shattered, her stomach ached, her head spun, her throat was scratchy, her body still descended into withdrawal. She wanted to sleep. She wanted to forget. She wanted to recover. She wanted to end it. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">So many emotions plagued her and her frail, recovering body. Longing for Arthur, was the strongest feeling and thought in her head at that moment. The one man she was convinced she could love after her husband was murdered had completely rejected her not once, but twice. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Wide awake, her thoughts wandered to simpler times between the two. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur held the door open as his crew filed out of his quarters. A meeting had just finished; a meeting where they discussed the finality of the attack on the Institute. Less than 48 hours stood between them and the demise of their biggest enemy. The world outside stood still as night fell, like it was aware of the precipice at which the Commonwealth was perched upon.  </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Slowly, men and women filed out, among them was Lila, the freshly promoted Paladin bringing up the rear of the line. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As she passed through the threshold of the door, Arthur grabbed her wrist and tugged her back into his quarters, slamming the door behind them in the process. His lips collided with hers as he pressed her roughly against the wall by the door. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Her heart skipped a beat as her pulse intensified, a small smile pulling at the corners of her lips. A</span>rthur pulled back, breathing ruggedly but a small chuckle escaping his lips.</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I wanted to do that the whole fucking time that was going on,” he whispered gently as they held their foreheads together. Lila’s grin spread as she brought her lips back to his, pulling him closer in the process.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">His large hands began to pull her white t-shirt off, breaking their kiss momentarily while he flung it across the room. His crystal eyes roved over her body. Her breasts heaved along with her heightened breathing, her arms were toned, her core was tight despite the faded pale purple stretch marks that resided on her lower abdomen. The signs of a past pregnancy evident on her body, but that didn’t make it any less captivating in his eyes. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She bit her lip slightly, always self-conscious of her body since having Shaun. Yet she let his eyes trace all of her curves before she repeated his own actions on him, tugging at his shirt and tossing it aside. The heat of their bodies came together, lighting a fire deep in each of their cores. Lila felt herself moisten at Arthur’s lightest touch, while he hardened quickly with the friction of the two of them pawing at each other. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Her hands fumbled with the belt of his fatigues before reaching past his underwear’s waistband to grab at his hardened member. A breathy sigh escaped his mouth as he melted into her warm hands, shoving his hips harder against her. She was wearing similar fatigues that he quickly stripped off of her along with her underwear. S</span>he nibbled at his ear lobe before planting soft kisses along his neck, a shiver running down his spine. </p>
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Without giving her a chance to process what he was doing, he had her shoved up against the windows of his quarters. The Airport and Diamond City in the distance gave off small amounts of amber light, bouncing softly off her shiny skin. </span>Arthur hoisted her up so most of her weight rested against the railing along the window.</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Two of his fingers trailed slowly up her slick folds, teasing her gently as he leaned in to whisper “I am going to make sure if this is the last time we have that we both don’t forget it.” <br/>That phrase sent another shiver wrecking through her bones as he slid two fingers into her, a gasp emanated from her throat as she leaned her head back against the cool glass. His fingers pumped slowly into her, hooking upwards to reach her sensitive spot inside. He looked upon her, as her eyes fluttered gently with the flow of her feelings. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Slowly, he retracted his fingers, sliding them gently up to encircle her clit. A whimper escaped her succulent lips before he met them with his own. He stopped abruptly, waiting for her to beg for what she really wanted. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She began to squirm slightly, wanting him to touch her all over. This is when he retracted his hands from her, hearing a responsive and saddened groan from her mouth. Turning her head slightly she began to kiss down his neck and to his collarbone, where she distributed small bites over the area. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">“Please Arthur...,” She drawled slowly. </span>A heavy breath left his chest, hardening even more at the sound of her voice alone. It’s dripped with sexual tones that he wanted to hear more of. Quickly, he pulled down his pants and teased her entrance before thrusting into her roughly, causing her to gasp in pleasure. He pumped into her at a fast, steady pace. With all he prep for the Institute mission they had little time to spare and little time for passionate love making. A sense of urgency existed aboard the ship as a whole, but especially within the Elder and Lila. It was obvious between the two as they pawed, scratched, bit, and insisted on a certain closeness as they continued. Her moans peaked in octave as her walls pulsed with pleasure and she released herself to the throws of her climax. Just after she finished, he withdrew from her sex and finished onto her stomach.</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Both of their eyes were heavily lidded as their breathing continued raggedly. Arthur let a small breathy chuckle leave his lips before he planted another kiss firmly on her lips. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">With the mission ahead of them, who knew if they would be able to do this again. So they took tonight to make the most of what they had left. </span>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">************</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Is the smut necessary? Not really, but I kinda don’t mind writing it. It’s also a nice break before we delve into some more serious things over the next few chapters! </p>
<p>Also wanted to note that the flashback in this chapter occurs about 3 days prior to the flashbacks that were in the last chapters. </p>
<p>Hope you all are enjoying still &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Young & Beautiful</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After leaving Lila in his quarters, Arthur walked the deck of the Prydwen. This allowed him some time to calm down and let himself think. In addition he decided to take care of some business. </span>
  <span class="s1">He approached Proctor Teagan in his caged quarters. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hello Proctor, I would appreciate if you refrain from selling Chems of any sort, outside of stimpaks, Rad-X, and RadAway, to Paladin Lila Smith.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur really didn’t give the Proctor a chance to question his commands as he turned on his heel and went back to the med bay. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Cade?” He called when he rounded the corner. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The doctor picked his head up from his paper work strewn across his desk. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Yes, Elder?” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Where is Paladin Smith’s bag? I would like to go through it to ensure all her remaining Chems are disposed of. She should have no access to them what-so-ever while on the Prydwen.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Cade pointed from his seat to the bed where Lila had been residing before moving to Maxson’s personal quarters. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Knock yourself out. I think it’s a good idea. If she is going to continue an alliance between us and the Minutemen then I think we should make sure that she stay sober, lest it compromise our tactics.” Cade spoke firmly before turning his attention back to his paperwork. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur picked the bag up and placed it on the bed before unzipping all the pockets. The first thing he found was the Jet she had been looking for that first day she was awake. He shook his head while he turned the inhaler in his hands before setting it aside. He unrolled every bit of clothing, ensuring she wasn’t hiding anything. About half way through he had found two inhalers of Jet and a syringe of Psycho before he stumbled upon a small black, leather bound book. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After taking a quick glance over his shoulder, just to ensure that Cade was occupied, Arthur opened the book. His eyes widened slightly as his heart skipped a beat. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The pages within this book were filled with pre-war pictures. Not family pictures, as one would expect, but pictures of Lila herself. Even more peculiar they weren’t normal pictures. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur stared at the pages for a long time, observing a pre-war Lila in her younger glory, decked out in soft white, lacy lingerie that hugged the curves of her body. In one image she was posed on a bed, her lids half closed as her auburn hair hung off the edge and tumbled toward the floor. One of her small hands was tangled in her hair while the other was placed softly at the top of her laced underwear. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">In another, she was glancing coyly over her shoulder as she stared into the camera with her innocent, baby blue eyes, soft light filtering in through half open curtains in the background. Her succulent lips were parted slightly, as her arms were placed gently at her sides; one hand was placed on the roundest portion of her butt. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He continued through the pages glancing at every picture, hoping to hold them in his memories for years to come. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As he got to the last page, he smiled softly to himself. In the last photo Lila had removed the lacy lingerie she had adorned in the past pictures and was covered in what appeared to be a silk sheet. The lighting allowed him to see the outline of her nipples through the thin sheet as she gave a sexy smile as she was kneeled on a disheveled bed. Her hair was covering one of her eyes slightly, leaving an air of mystery to her.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">He couldn’t help but smile as he kept looking down at the face captured in the pictures. This Lila seemed like a completely different person from the Lila that he had even met initially, let alone the one that was harboured in his room just now. It also made his heart ache slightly as he wondered what would have happened if he had been alive pre-war and knew her. With a gentle shake of his head he didn’t let that thought get any further. </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He quickly put the book in one of his inner coat pockets before returning to his search for Chems in her bag. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">By the end of the search he had come up with about a dozen Jet inhalers, three syringes of Psycho, two packs of Mentats, and a bottle of Day Tripper. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After placing the bag back in its original spot he made his way to Teagan. He placed all the Chems on the counter.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Dispose of these when you can.” Arthur sighed heavily as he turned away. He headed to his makeshift quarters and flopped onto the bed, allowing sleep to envelope him easily. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Fun fact: this is the first chapter I wrote! This was the idea that inspired this whole fic.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Ocean Eyes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>!TW!: Suicidal thoughts and actions</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1"><span class="s1">Lila continued to toss and turn, chasing sleep, but sleep just ran further and further from her grasps. She supposed this was another symptom of the withdrawal her body was going through. </span>Thoughts ran so quickly through her mind she could barely recognize them. She sat up abruptly in bed and pressed her hands hard against the sides of her head, clenching her eyes; willing both the pain and thoughts to stop. It was useless. </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">One thought that was constant, constant since the day she came out of the Vault was “why are you still here?”.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her husband was long dead. Her son, also now dead, was not who she thought or wanted her son to be. Elder Maxson...well...he had other things to worry about and she knew it was never going to become something she was looking for him to give her. He had made that clear even more so over the past couple days with his clear annoyance of her and her actions. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her soft blue eyes glazed over with tears as all these men crossed her mind. She felt alone, had so for months and months. She was able to push it aside for so long because she was holding on to the thought of saving Shaun and the possibility of her and Arthur working things out. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">But now her last hopes were dashed. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She pulled herself out of bed, walking toward the large doors. Her IV’s had been removed earlier that evening, allowing her to move more freely. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila knew that the guards at the door changed about this time of night from when she would stay up late with Danse. There would be a brief moment where no one would be watching her door, and she knew this was her opportunity to do what she needed to do. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The hard rubber soles of the guards boots squeaked as they moved away from the door, right on cue. She cracked the door open and looked around. The halls of the Prydwen were quiet, the soft rumble of engines being the only noise echoing through the halls at this hour.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">She slipped softly into the hallway, her bare feet carrying no noise as she slinked into the darkness and toward the flight deck. </span>As she emerged from the door and into the cool early morning air her heart jumped into her throat as new tears stung at her eyes.</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Was she sure this was what she wanted? This would solve her problems, right? She spun her wedding band around her finger with the thumb on the same hand.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Soon, she thought, soon her and Nate would be reunited in peace. Her thin nightdress and long hair whipped around her in the darkness that was edging the sunrise, the soft glow of Diamond City in the distance setting the dark ambiance of her final night. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She walked slowly to an empty vertibird docking station, looking over the edge of the metal grating, her chest heavy as she tried to breath calmly and fight back tears. She looked down her nose as she stepped closer to the edge, her big toe clutching the edge of the metal. The metal was chilly against her bare feet. The wind continued to cast her hair in front of her face, but she didn’t mind. Not at this moment. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her eyes drifted gently shut as she finally let out a long, steady exhale. For this one moment she felt somewhat at peace. Before she could move any closer to the edge she heard the metal door behind her slam open, whacking hard against the metal railing. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lila!” she heard the familiar rough voice call out. The voice had scared her the tiniest bit, but she didn’t dare to take a step. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She didn’t need to open her eyes to know who it was. Slowly turning her head, her eyes slowly opened, watching Arthur take cautious steps toward her. A group of knights stood behind him at a safe distance.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">“What are you doing?” he asked her softly against the wind.</span>Lila shook her head slowly, fighting tears, trying to speak without cracking her facade.</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I can’t do this anymore,” she spoke back, her words barely above a whisper as she looked at him longingly.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur stepped slowly toward her “Do what Lila?” He asked concerned, their eyes never parting. Her eyes had never looked so scared, yet so deep. He swore he could swim in the ocean of her eyes if she allowed him to. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I lost my husband and my son was taken from me. After months of searching for my son I lost him too. Then, after believing I couldn’t be betrayed again, the one man I thought I could love after I lost my husband denied me and hates me now.” Her voice cracked at the last sentence as she stared deep into his eyes, watching his face pang with guilt. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Please Lila, step back from the edge. We can work this out. I promise you, things will get better. ” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila’s huge eyes brimmed with tears as her auburn hair whipped into her face, sticking to the tear stains on her cheeks. She looked back over the edge and then back to the strong man before her. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Just then her eyes started to get heavy, despite her fighting the urge. Before losing consciousness she took a small step forward, toward Arthur. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Wake Me Up</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur sat resiliently by Lila’s side, playing back the last few hours in his head.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sleep hadn’t been coming easy to him that night either. He spent the hours staring at the ceiling, counting the rivets, or staring at the wall, also counting rivets. After awhile he decided to check on Lila, possibly offer an apology for his actions earlier. His stomach was swirling with guilt at how he had reacted toward her...again. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He stood from the bed and made his way to the door. When he got to the door of his own quarters he noticed the guards were in the midst of switching positions, as no one was there currently. Once the door to his quarters was opened he looked around the room, his eyes landing lastly on the bed. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">His heart stopped for two seconds before accelerating into high gear. The bed was empty. There was no Lila anywhere in the room. From the hall he heard a door shut. The door to the flight deck. He launched himself into action, rushing down the stairs and grabbing any knights and squires he could on his way for help. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">His mind fast-forwarded to when he had caught her in his arms before she hit the metal deck. He hadn’t noticed until then how thin and light she had actually become since he had last held her to his body. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Go get Cade! Quickly!” He called over his shoulder to the Squire that had followed him onto the deck. They hurried off, back through the door to the main deck.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">His large hand stroked her face gently. Her cheeks were gaunt and her skin was dull. Arthur felt his chest tighten, guilt trickle into him yet again. He stood then and carried her quickly back to his chambers. Part way there he met Cade, filling him in on what had happened as they rounded the corner to his quarters. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">His eyes opened, his elbows placed firmly on his knees as he chewed nervously at his fingers. Now he sat here, beside Lila, or what was left of her. He felt absolutely guilty for what had transpired from when his team brought her here until now. He hadn’t acknowledged the seriousness and legitimacy of Lila’s feelings. He let his anger get the better of him in most situations. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">While they were on the flight deck he had told her that they would “work on this”. He slowly shook his head as he let it hang between his hands. Why did he say that? Well to try and save her of course. But he knew that what had just happened wouldn’t change the Brotherhoods code on fraternizing with other faction leaders. As those thoughts drifted around in his head there was a knock on the door. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Come in,” he called, not moving from his position. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He had been expecting Cade, coming to check up on Lila, but it was Preston Garvey who stood in the door. Arthur got up from his seat immediately.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Colonel Garvey, what are you doing here?” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Cade sent one of your teams out to me at The Castle and I was escorted back here. Told me it was urgent news with the General.” As he finished his sentence he looked toward the bed beside Arthur. It took a few seconds but he realized that the woman in the bed was in fact the General. He walked quickly to the side of the bed and looked down upon her. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">“What the hell happened to her?” Preston questioned, voice cool and collected, though Arthur could sense his agitation. </span>Arthur filled him in on what had happened since Upsilon had found the General until now.</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Preston let out a nervous and choked laugh as he rubbed at his chin. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I don’t exactly find this funny Colonel, so I would appreciate if you had some respect.” Arthur glared at him from a few feet away. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Oh, I’m not laughing because it’s funny Elder. I’m more so shocked at the lack of care you seem to provide for Lila in her current state. As The Brotherhood I expected better. But she’s left unsupervised, in a critical state, and you still continue to fight with her?” Preston shook his head. “That isn’t proper care. I demand she be moved back to The Castle so her own can look after her.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur felt his hands ball into fists in anger. “I believe Knight-Captain Cade would beg to differ. She is in too critical of a state to move anywhere.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Preston shrugged his shoulders. “Well I don’t care what you all think up here. She needs to recover in her own space, away from you people.” Preston had sneered the last word. That sneer lit a fire in Arthur, his hands shaking slightly as he stared down the other man.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I would watch your tone Colonel. She hasn’t even been ‘home’ since the night after we defeated the Institute. What makes you think she wants to go back there?”</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Well it’s quite obvious from her current state she isn’t getting at better. Let’s not pretend you actually care about her. If you did care you would have done a bit of a better job looking after her rather than making the situation worse by-“</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur didn’t let Preston finish his sentence. He had let the anger build long enough that the words spilling from Preston’s mouth had pushed him too far. It happened too quick for him to realize. His solid fist met the bottom right corner of Preston’s jaw with more force than Arthur had used in a long time. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Preston hit the floor, knocked out completely from the quick punch dealed from the Elder. Cade walked in just then and almost dropped the documents in his hand. His eyes kept flickering between Preston on the floor, Lila in the bed, and Arthur shaking his hand out to relax some of the pain from the impact on his fist. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Take him to the med bay. Don’t let him back in here until I say so,” Arthur didn’t meet Cade’s eyes as he sat back down in the chair beside the bed. Cade called in a nearby knight and initiate to help him carry Preston away. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur sat in silence trying to sort through his thoughts for what felt like hours, stealing glances every once in a while at Lila as she still slept soundly. Somewhere in it all Arthur had dozed off, his head and arms rested on the edge of the bed. He awoke to a soft, lingering feeling along his arms. He picked his head up and his eyes met another pair of blue eyes, not steely like his, but soft as the blue of a spring sky. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>We are now basically caught up to where I had written when I started posting this fic. I’m trying to keep a schedule of uploading at least every second day :) <br/>Thanks for the continued support !</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Dream On</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Blackness.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Numbness.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Did it happen? </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/>She thought quietly, the sentence echoing through her head. It didn’t seem like it. The nothingness in her head was intoxicating, with just a prickle of reality. Her thoughts became more and more aware. She realized then that she must still alive, just unconscious. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Mumbling.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Flashes of colour.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">What was that? </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Amber light slowly leaked into frame. A room made of complete steel. That familiar thrumming of engines. The Prydwen. But this felt different. The mumbling slowly and surely became more understandable as the amber light grew. Moving from a blur to something more coherent, a room. The Command Deck. There were 7 people in the room. 6 of them were senior level workers aboard The Prydwen that Lila recognized very vaguely. The seventh person was the one speaking; Arthur. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“Brothers and Sisters, the road behind us has been long and fraught with difficulty. Each and every one of you has surpassed my expectations by rapidly facilitating our arrival in the Commonwealth.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Hang on...this felt like a déjà-vu, even though it was happening in her mind and not around her. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“You have accomplished this amazing feat without a hint of purpose or direction, and most impressively, without question.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She had heard this before she had sworn, as she heard the voice prattle on about revealing their true mission in the Commonwealth. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“Beneath the Commonwealth there is a cancer...known as the Institute, a malignant growth that needs to be cut before it infects the surface.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It dawned on her then where she had heard this speech before, and the hatred that tinted Arthur’s voice as he spoke. She was reliving the first time she had met Arthur. Though she wasn’t living it through her own eyes, she was viewing it as if she were a fly on the wall</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As if on cue, out of the back of the room came a woman. Herself. She couldn’t not look at her past self. She could feel confidence radiating off of her, but also a deeply buried grief and sadness. There was also a hint of nervousness as she watched herself watch the man at the front of the room. Her body was also much different. Not ravaged by Chems and still held some of the weight she had carried from her Pre-War life. Voluminous, is what she used to consider it. She knew her body now was just a silhouette of what it used to be. By the time her attention fell back to the Elder he was almost done of his speech. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“This campaign will be costly and many lives will be lost. But in the end, we will be saving humankind from it’s worse enemy...itself. Ad Victoriam!” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As he spoke the last two wards he gave the customary, cross body salute as all those present responded and left the room; except for Lila. She watched herself move forward slightly, toward Arthur.</span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“I care about them, you know. The people of the Commonwealth.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">From where she watched the scene she watched his shoulder deflate slightly as he spoke. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“If you say so.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She watched as her body shifted, her arms coming across her chest. Lila had to admit, in her first moments in front of him and knowing what she had from rumours around the Commonwealth, she didn’t believe him when he said that. The Brotherhood she had come to know from others seemed to just be there to make war. After getting closer to him she realized that, in his own way, he did care. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“I can understand your indecisiveness. Turning your weapons on the very same people that you’re trying to save can be a bitter pill to swallow.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">If she was in her own body she would have flinched at that statement. Having to pull the trigger on her own son had solidified that in her mind. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“So, what do you want from me?” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“I want you to start taking responsibility for this planet. To start making a difference.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Another flinch, if it were possible. She felt like she had taken much more responsibility than was needed. Not only did she feel responsible for the actions of the past, but also the actions of many of the things happening then and things thatcontinued to happen. Lila had made a difference alright, but not the way she had imagined. She logged her mind back into the conversation at hand. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“Therefore, from this moment forward, I’m granting you the rank of knight. And, befitting your new title, we’re granting you a suit of Power Armour to protect you on the field of battle. Wear it with pride.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“Knight? What is this? The Dark Ages?” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The sarcasm was dripping from her voice and she watched the small upturn of her lips on the right side of her face. Arthur’s facade cracked for a millisecond, the tiniest of flickers happened behind his blue eyes. That had been the first thing she had noticed about him: those piercing, scalding, bright steely blue eyes. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“Judging from the state of the world, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say we’re living in that era again.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He went on to tell her to get familiar with the ships and it’s occupants before reporting for some new orders. She clumsily gave the Brotherhood salute and a nod. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s1">“</span>
    <span class="s2">Thank you, Elder. I won’t let you down.” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>
    <span class="s2">“Oh, I have a feeling you won’t...” </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">His voice trailed off softly and she watched a quick blush radiate from behind the collar of her Vault suit before she scurried off. Arthur leaned forward on the railing of the command deck, looking outwards at the Commonwealth. From there things started to fade, waver, before slowly falling away. Lila tried to grab at something solid in her mind but couldn’t. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her eyes fluttered open slowly. She looked around carefully, noticing the darkness of the room. It was night again, so she had been out for almost a day. And this was real, not another dream. Her eyes then fell to the man sleeping with his head placed gently on his folded arms. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur. He looked so at peace while he slept, his face actually relaxed instead of pinched in annoyance or the usual cold, emotionless, tough exterior he provided to majority of those he met. Lila then remembered how young the Elder actually was; just a mere 21. His time in battle and as Elder hadn’t been kind to him. The scar down the right side of his face didn’t take away from his appearance, just adding another air of mystery to those who only knew him at a distance. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila began to trace gentle circles on the arm of his flight suit, glad to see she wasn’t dreaming again he really was there. His eyes snapped open and he lifted his head slowly, looking back at her. Another comfort: those eyes never changed. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. All Apologies</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lila.” Arthur’s voice was rough from the bout of sleep he had just awoken from. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Arthur.” Lila returned with the smallest of whispers. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Moments dragged on while they stared at each other. Both of them clawing through their minds to try and form words to express anything, but especially to acknowledge what had happened earlier.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You scared me...” Arthur spoke quietly, his gaze fell from hers as he thought back to what brought them here. Lila had never heard his voice at such a low volume. Her heart aches softly, realizing that she was the one who was causing this pain in him. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m so-,” Lila began, but was stopped when Arthur put his hand up. She stared at the palm of his hand as she waited for him to finish. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You don’t need to apologize,” his voice trailed softly. “I’m the one who needs to apologize to you.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila gave him a confused, unsure look before she nodded gently, signalling him to continue on with what he was saying. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Ever since Upsilon brought you here I haven’t exactly been...understanding of your situation. I wholeheartedly blamed you for where you got yourself. I can’t lie to you, I thought what had happened to you was due to weakness on your part. Weakness that was unexcused and could be ignored.” His voice stayed strong the whole time he spoke, his eyes still averted from hers. It was hard to meet her gaze as he admitted that when this first started he thought she was just weak, that she was just making excuses to pick up bad behaviours. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I understand now. It wasn’t weakness. It wasn’t excuses. It wasn’t something you wanted. It was a result of ignorance; ignorance of those around you. Which, in turn, had an effect on you.”</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila was worrying her bottom lip between her teeth as he spoke, her heart skittering around her rib cage as she listened wholeheartedly.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Maybe...just maybe, if one person had paid attention, checked up on you, stayed with you...this may not have happened. But instead, people took what they needed and left you behind. And...I’m including myself in that...” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The last sentence he whispered. Lila was shocked to hear the words fall from his mouth. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lila, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I belittled and ignored your feelings. I’m sorry I walked away when you needed someone the most. That night, of the party? When you said you were okay? I should have known that wasn’t the truth.” He took her hand gently and stroked his thumb across the plain of her knuckles. That night was still fresh in both of their memories. The unspoken words of how ‘not okay’ she was. The unrequited ‘I love you’ that had hung in the air between them before souring, changing their feelings and actions toward each other in so many aspects. The night, for Lila, when there was no turning back. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You gave up more than anyone can realize, all without being asked. Without most people realizing what you had to sacrifice and what you had to lose. All of this, you did without looking for credit of any kind. And so many people walked away from you when you needed someone the most. And for that, I’m sorry. I can never forgive myself that it took you...trying to take your life for me to realize all this.” Arthur finished and finally flicked his eyes up to meet hers. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Tears stung the edges of her eyes again. The fluttering in her chest calmed and she shut her eyes softly, a tear falling from her right eye and trickling down her cheek. Arthur slowly lifts his left hand and casts the tear away with his index finger. He went to pull his hand away but she grabbed it with her own, pressing it gently to her cheek. She nuzzled softly into the calloused skin of his palm. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When she re-opened her eyes, his were fully focused on hers. She let a small, scared grin cross her lips. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Thank you,” she spoke barely above a whisper. “Arthur...?” Her voice trailed softly on, waiting for his gentle nod of approval before continuing. A few more tears slipped down her cheeks before she spoke again. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I don’t know what to do... Can you please help me?” </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Happy (belated) Easter! <br/>Sorry this chapter is so short, but we finally get to see some feelings from the big guy himself, outside of anger. <br/>Still trying to keep up to a every 2 day upload schedule :) hope you’re enjoying!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Trust in You</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I get it, he can be a bit…overbearing. But did you really need to punch him?”</p>
<p>Lila was staring at Arthur from her spot on the bed as he approached with a tray full of food. Her look was mostly disapproving, yet a bit of playfulness snuck its way onto her face too.</p>
<p>“Sometimes my anger gets the best of me, what can I say.” He shrugged his shoulders as he set the tray beside her on a small table. She shook her head with a small chuckle as she reached out and took the glass of water first, downing it in seconds. She followed it up with some melon slices, leaving the grilled bits of radstag for last.</p>
<p>He had just finished filling her in on what had happened between him and Preston while she was still unconscious. It had been a few days since she had woken up, and as time passed Arthur felt more comfortable filling her in on more of what had been going on. She was most curious as to why Preston had been on the Prydwen when she woke up. Preston stopped by shortly after she had woken to talk to her and assure her that the Castle and the Minutemen were in good hands while she recovered. He had left right after, not wanting to risk being on the receiving end of Arthur’s anger again. He had given the Elder a curt nod but spoke no words as he left that day.</p>
<p>Since then, Arthur had not left Lila’s side, wanting to be sure she was recovering safely and with as little interference as possible. Cade was really the only other person on board that she saw, other than the odd squire or knight coming to Arthur with some intel and other concerns of the Brotherhood. He made sure she was always kept hydrated, fed, and not in pain.</p>
<p>The days dragged on slowly in most cases. Lila slept a lot those first couple days, finally catching on to a normal sleep schedule. When she wasn’t sleeping, she was usually eating or talking to Arthur, much like their current conversation.</p>
<p>“Only sometimes?” she questions as she finished the last bit of radstag on her plate before shoving it away satisfied. She threw herself back on the bed with a loud sigh. “Preston does mean well. There isn’t another person I would trust more with running the Minutemen then him. There really aren’t many people you can fully trust anymore.” Her voice had a hint of longing in it at the end of the sentence.</p>
<p>Arthur picked up her tray and set it outside the door before locking it up for the night, returning to sit on the edge of the bed beside her.</p>
<p>“Was there more trust between people back before the bombs?” he asked. She shrugged her shoulders against the woolen blanket she was laying on.</p>
<p>“In ways, yes. In other ways, not really. I never had a full militia to look after before and entrust to someone else, so that’s very different. But there were more people I trusted, yes. Usually over trivial things. Like, I knew who I could trust with looking after Shaun, or to pick up something I needed when I couldn’t leave the house. I knew who I couldn’t trust with certain information, people could be very petty back then. Then waking up in this, I had to fully trust most people blindly. I had to trust they wouldn’t steer me wrong and would believe me when I told them who, or what, I was.” The words trailed off slowly, as Arthur looked down at her.</p>
<p>“I think a lot of people probably thought I was just crazy, saying I was pre-War and all. I ended up finding and trusting some good people though. Preston, Piper, Nick, Hancock. They all took what I said in stride and helped any way they could.” Arthur then diverted his gaze to his hands as he listened to her.</p>
<p>“What about me?” he said softly, unsure if he wanted to hear her answer or not.</p>
<p>There was a long silence between the two of them as Lila rattled her mind. Arthur was so <em>different</em> from the other people she had mentioned before. She wanted to add Danse to that list as well, but she knew Arthur wouldn’t have wanted to hear that name.</p>
<p>Arthur had started simply as ‘Elder Maxson’ to her. He was just her higher-up for a good portion of her time with the Brotherhood. She would only report to him when asked to or if a significant piece of information was discovered in regard to the Institute. Somewhere along the lines they had started their ‘liaison’ and suddenly that line of higher-up and something <em>more</em> was blurred between them, and only to them. To this day, she was sure no one had known what transpired between them as the fight against the Institute approached.</p>
<p>Did she trust him? He had never wronged her, in a sense. Had he broken her heart? Yes, but should that mean she shouldn’t trust him now. He was giving up a lot of time to ensure she was recovering completely.</p>
<p>She sat up slowly and met his gaze. There was confusion in his eyes, with a taint sadness verging on pain. A small smile pressed onto her lips.</p>
<p>“Arthur, we have been through more together than any of those people I mentioned. I would be lying if I said that my trust didn’t waver at times, especially while I was hurting. But these last few days, I have seen a completely different side of you. If it wasn’t for you that day on the flight deck…well I don’t want to think about that. So, yes. I can add you to the small list of people I trust in this insane world.”</p>
<p>As she finished speaking, she placed her hand over his on his lap. A small squeeze transferred from her grip to his. Their gazes were transfixed on each other. Arthur’s eyes were the first to move away, but not far. He traced the outline of her lips with his eyes. Over her pronounced cupid’s bow, along the curves where he knew a smile would appear if she allowed it, across her plump bottom lip which she was currently rubbing between her teeth.</p>
<p>His large hand came up to cup her right cheek, his thumb rubbing gentle circles on the pale freckled skin of her cheekbone. A small breath hitched in her throat, she held it there as she waited for him to make the move. He didn’t make her wait long, as his lips pressed softly to hers. When their lips met, Lila let a soft exhale release from nostrils, not wanting to part from him. Her hands moved up to lace around his neck, against short, stubbly hair.</p>
<p>Arthur leaned her back into the woolen blanket softly, letting his right hand caress her hip with a sure grip. As Lila continued to kiss him, she knew, that for this moment, she had placed trust in the right man.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Almost didn't finish this in time, but I pushed through! Enjoy a semi-filler/fluff chapter. <br/>Now I'm going to go celebrate turning quarter of century today!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Do I Wanna Know?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lila landed on her knees in the dirt and out of breath, lungs aching as they pulled air from the atmosphere. Her head hung between her shoulders as her hands skidded the ground. A heavy sigh left her as she battled to get oxygen back into her system. After a couple recovery breathes, she lifted her head back up quickly, surveying the surroundings. Her eyes darted back and forth before falling on the figure before her, but it moved out of sight again in a flash. She pushed herself onto her knees before grabbing at the box next to her to pull herself up. The skidding of her palms had ripped them open slightly, tiny dots of blood staining the metal. Her baseball bat rested on the ground about six feet ahead of her. She pushed her aching legs forward and grabbed it.</p>
<p>As her hands grasped the base of the blunt weapon she spun around. The bat made direct contact with the target, that had now snuck up behind her, with a loud metal clang, deafened slightly by the wood of the bat. She pulled her arms back again and served another whack to the bot, straight to its speaker in the front. The eyebot shuttered slightly, falling mere inches from its original floating height. Lila knew one more solid hit would do the bot in. The bat was hoisted over her head with both arms and came forcefully down on the top of the eyebot. It fell immediately to the ground, breaking into even more pieces as it hit the tarmac.</p>
<p>A small applause erupted nearby. Lila looked up and saw Piper clapping her hands in a fast, happy manner, jumping slightly at her success. Arthur stood a few feet away, his hands also clapped, just not as enthusiastically as Piper.</p>
<p>“Now, <em>that</em> is more like the Lila I know!” Piper commented as she moved toward Lila and gave her a hearty clap on the back. Lila couldn’t help but chuckle. It was the first time she had felt more like herself in a long time. It had been about two weeks since the night on the flight deck. Cade had just given her permission two days beforehand to start leaving the Prydwen in short bouts to re-train at the Airport. They still wanted her to remain close, to ensure she was back to herself and her usual capabilities before unleashing her back into the Commonwealth.</p>
<p>Arthur had allowed her to use some old eyebots to train against, focusing back on her melee attacking. During her time on Chems and her time recovering on the Prydwen she had lost a bit of the muscle and attack-abilities she gained during her time in the wastelands.</p>
<p>“Thanks Piper,” Lila smiled as she grabbed at the can of purified water she had left beside Piper as she trained. “I’m finally starting to feel more like me too. It’s a weird feeling but…it’s nice. I really missed getting into scraps,” she finished as she consumed the whole of the can in no time.</p>
<p>Once Lila was allowed to have visitors the first person she reached out to was Piper. She missed her best friend and travelling the wastelands with her. She also missed hearing the outrageous stories of Diamond City that she was always investigating. Piper had shown up the next day after receiving the message on her terminal. They had plenty of time to catch up, but Piper couldn’t stay long. After talking the whole day Piper had left on the promise that she would return when Lila was feeling even better. When the message came through two days ago that she was given clearance to begin training again Piper had leapt at the opportunity to help Lila get back into her best physical condition.</p>
<p>“You’re getting there, Smith. Still a far ways to come but this is great for a start,” Arthur entered the conversation as he handed Lila a towel to dry herself. Lila smiled at him and took the towel from his hands.</p>
<p>“Thank you, Elder,” she nodded at him. He returned the nod and left, leaving Lila to alone with Piper.</p>
<p>Once he was out of earshot Piper crossed her arms firmly across her chest.</p>
<p>“Fess up, Smith.” Lila rubbed at her brow with the towel, before giving Piper a questioning look with a raised brow.</p>
<p>“What? What are you talking about?” Piper flashed her gaze to Arthur’s back as he moved away and back to Lila.</p>
<p>“You can’t tell me there is no tension between you two. What happened while you were MIA? Did big, bad Elder Maxson whisk you off your feet? You two seem…different around each other.” Maybe it was the reporter in her talking, but Piper did genuinely want to know what was happening between her friend and the Elder. By the blush that scoured Lila’s cheeks and neck, she knew it was something.</p>
<p>“We have just been spending a lot of time together. You can’t say it’s weird that he cares about his newest Paladin when she suddenly goes missing and makes an ass of herself. He's just been making sure I stay out of trouble and get back on track. What is the harm in that?” Lila still didn’t want to disclose details of her and Arthur to anyone. They were just getting back into a good, yet somewhat romantic, rapport. She didn’t want to risk it.</p>
<p>Piper rolls her eyes and shakes her head in disagreement, but lets it slide for Lila’s sake. She would wiggle it out of her eventually.</p>
<p>“Well, I should head back to the city and check on Nat, get some noodles, hit the sack. Keep up the training Lila, you’ll be back to that spiteful, bloodthirsty wasteland dweller in no time,” she said with a wink as she gave her friend a squeeze around the shoulders.</p>
<p>Lila couldn’t help but laugh and smile at her friends attempt to get the scoop on her. “I’ll see you around Piper. Say hi to Nat for me and stay safe. Try not to piss off too many people.” Piper gave her a quick salute from her paper-girl style hat and headed off into the wasteland.</p>
<p>Lila turned back toward the Airport to catch a vertibird back to the Prydwen. When she was back on board, she headed to the mess hall. The clearance Cade gave her also allowed her to get her own food again and return to her old quarters, which was just Paladin Danse’s old quarters. After filling up on food and grabbing a couple of snacks for later, she headed back to her quarters.</p>
<p>When she rounded the corner she saw Arthur was standing at her door, looking as though he was contemplating knocking.</p>
<p>“Good evening, Elder,” she said as she approached him. He drew back slightly, looking between her and the door.</p>
<p>“Paladin Smith. I thought you had already returned to your quarters for the night.” She shrugged her shoulders and looked at him.</p>
<p>“And yet, here I am. Did you need something?” she asked with a devilish smile hinting on her lips.</p>
<p>“Uh…yes,” Arthur spoke, almost unsure of himself as Lila began to unlock her door, throwing it open for him to enter. She shut the door behind the two of them and set her stolen snacks onto the small table in the corner of the room.</p>
<p>Lila then turned back to Arthur with the same devilish smile, now making its appearance more and more apparent on her lips. She rejoined him in the middle of the room and wrapped her arms around his neck before allowing her lips to meet his. He returned her kiss with as much fervor as she was delivering. When their lips parted for a moment he smiled cheekily.</p>
<p>“You did great and you are getting better Paladin, but you still have some things to learn.” She gave him a look that would say <em>‘as if’</em>, if looks could speak. She threw his battle jacket off his shoulders at that point and stared at him coldly.</p>
<p>“Oh shut up Elder.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>SURPRISE! A chapter a day before its usually posted! Might take a couple days to write the next one so I thought I would deliver this one early. A bit more filler, and a lead in to the next chapter with (maybe) a little smut ;)<br/>Also note, that I have updated the chapter numbers! That's right folks, we are approaching the end of this fic!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Don’t Stop Me Now</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Smut heavy in the first section of this chapter. If you aren’t into it you can skip toward the end. I put a large break between the smut and the important thing that happens in this chapter! <br/>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">With his jacket shucked onto the floor Arthur quickly entangled his arms around Lila, their bodies pushing together. Lila could feel the heat radiating through his flight suit and against her and her measly commoner clothes. She had opted to not wear the standard Brotherhood uniform while she trained, instead she wore army green khaki-style pants paired with a long sleeve, waffled shirt that had been turned off-white from many washes and uses. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As heat continued to exude from his body, his hands began to work on untucking her shirt and pulling it off her body, joining his coat on the ground. His lips began to kiss along her exposed collarbone, trailing blazing hot love bites up to her neck and onto her ear lobe. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">A hitched breath grew to a moan from her lips, as her hands moved from his neck and down to his chest. Each of her hands placed softly on his pecs, feeling his heart jack hammer beneath her touch before moving to begin sliding the zipper of his suit down.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Both of his hands grabbed her hips and pulled them flush with his, allowing her to feel the consequences of their actions growing under his suit. His tongue lightly traced the conch of her ear before diving back into her neck. One hand moved from her hip, up along her skin to cup gently at her still covered breasts. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The zipper of his flight suit was now just above his navel, exposing most of his chest to her. As he worked red welts onto her neck, her nails clawed along his skin, sending electrical snaps up his spine. Her hands then gripped the edges of his open flight suit and began to push it back over his broad, muscular shoulders and off his arms. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The suit still clung tightly to his hips, but left his torso completely exposed. Her nails tickled softly at the pronounced ‘V’ of his lower stomach, his muscle tightening in response. Her eyes roved over his skin, looking at the scars marring his chest and stomach. She dipped her head to kiss along several of them, hands trailing his hips. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As she kissed his skin he moved his hand to take her belt off and begin working on removing her pants. When she withdrew from her tender kisses, she pushed her pants the remainder of the way to the floor, stepping out of them. She crooked a finger into one of the loops on his suit and pulled him toward the bed. As she sat on the sinking mattress he remained standing she pushed his suit to the floor, leaving them around his ankles and moving to his boxer briefs. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">With a swift motion she pushed those down as well, releasing his hardened member. She palmed at it before grabbing it in a firm fist and tracing her tongue along the swollen head. Arthur bit his lip hard, holding back a throaty moan that begged to be released as Lila took his length between her lips. Her head moved her lips down his length, her tongue pressing firmly against it as she came back up. This rhythm was repeated several times at varying speeds making Arthur’s head buzz with pleasure. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When she pulled her lips off with a pop her hands went to the waistband of her underwear, which she promptly pulled off and tossed aside. She eased herself down onto the mattress, her eyes clouded with lust as she beckoned him to join her. Arthur obliged and crawled onto the small bed with her after removing his suit the rest of the way and kicking off his boots. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Their eyes couldn’t be torn from each other, the two shades of blue lingering solely on one another. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He leaned in with ease and kissed her lips with a soft caress. Her lips meshed perfectly with his, her hands tracing patterns down his chest. The kisses grew hungrier, hands played harder along each other’s skin. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila pulled away first as she climbed her way on top of Arthur, legs straddling him on his lower stomach. He took this brief moment to observe her face, wanting to commit it to memory. Cheeks were flushed with a pink hue that spread to the tips of her ears and her neck. Her freckles peaked eagerly along her nose, brought forward from her training in the sun. Her lips were both swollen from the kissing and biting leading to this moment. Blue eyes were half-lidded with lust. Auburn hair was brushed behind her shoulders in light, tumbling curls. He reached up and cupped her face softly as she nuzzled into it. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">With his hands now firmly on her hips she lifted up and moved back mere inches before sinking him in slowly between her legs, into her core. Their foreplay had left her dripping and she took him with ease. Once she had him in to the hilt she let out a sharp exhale, adjusting to his length. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After a brief moment she began to ride him gently at first, taking him slowly while she bit her lip to hold back her moans. His hands rested firmly on her hips, following her direction. Once she was well adjusted and full of anticipation she slowly sped up the pace as her hands clawed along his chest, her hips rising and falling. Arthur’s eyes were currently closed softly, enjoying every ridge and valley of Lila. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She put herself down onto his chest, biting at his collarbone and leaving small bruises as she still kept her hips moving at a steady pace. He moved a hand to her bra, pushing one cup down to expose her peachy nipples to the cool air. He pulled the pebbled nub between his teeth, eliciting a sharp whine from her as she lifted herself from his chest lightly. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He continued to tweak and please her with his tongue along her breasts. Her hips began to move in a more jagged motion, so he took her hips and held them off of himself. Taking over, he began to move up into her, fucking her as he held her off him. Her breathes were coming in short gasps, his becoming rough as well as they both chased each other’s climax. Her hands gripped tightly at his shoulders and she whined loudly as she felt herself tighten around his thick member, pulsating as her pleasure washed over her in waves. At the same moment Arthur’s hips stuttered as he groaned, pushing deep as possible into her. A sigh escaped him in a rush as he came inside her. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">They remained clasped together, despite dewy, sweaty skin, for many minutes afterwards as they recovered. When Lila had caught her breath she removed herself from his lap, rolling to be beside him in bed. He placed gentle, lazy kisses along her hairline as she cuddled into him. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Stay with me tonight?” she asked in hushed tones as her hand intertwined with his on his stomach. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Of course,” he whispered in response and he grabbed the blanket beside them and draped it over their bodies. He was too tired to stay awake much longer, so he pressed a firm kiss to her forehead before allowing himself to drift off slowly to a deep, satisfying sleep. </span>
</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila tried with all her might to fall asleep, but sleep evaded her in short bouts. Five minutes asleep and then awake for thirty. Asleep for thirty and then awake for an hour. She kept her body still on the bed, not wanting to wake the dozing Arthur beside her as he breathed deeply and contently. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After another forty-five minutes of staring at the ceiling, Lila decided to at least get up and have a seat at her desk, even just to clear her head or fiddle with her Pip-boy. As she stood with grace she tip-toed first to her dresser, pulling on a new pair of panties. When she went to make her way to her desk her foot hit something on the floor. She stooped to feel it; it was Arthur’s battlecoat. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">With a small smirk and a glance back to the bed to confirm he was still asleep she picked the heavy coat up and threw it over her shoulders. She hugged herself in the leather and inhaled the scent of Arthur from the coat: cracked and slightly burnt leather, light cigar smoke, a hint of sweat, and a lingering spicy scent that was uniquely him. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">With the coat on her shoulders she moved to her desk and began to fiddle with the Pip-boy in the dull light that it put out. After a few moments she got bored of that. Curiosity got the better of her and she began to explore the pockets of Arthur’s jacket. All were coming up empty until she got to the inner pockets. She felt a rough, leather bound book. A quick look over her shoulder confirmed Arthur was still snoozing away. She withdrew the small book from the pocket and turned it over in her hand. She opened it to a random page and her heart flew up into her throat.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The book had felt familiar in her grasp, but now looking at the contents she knew why it had felt familiar. This book was hers. It contained pictures of her, pre-war. A boudoir photobook she had made. After a moment of embarrassment, and longing for her old body, she began to feel the beginning of rage. Where had Arthur gotten this? Had he gone through her things? Why did he keep it? Why didn’t he tell her or show her? This hadn’t been for him, now or ever. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As she turned the book over in her hands she made a decision. She threw the jacket off quickly and made her way back to her dresser, pulling on the crisp, blue Vault suit. Next, she went to the armoury closet on the opposite side of the room. The wasteland was unpredictable and she needed protection. She clipped on arm and leg pieces and then lifted a chest piece over her head, securing it at her sides. Ammo and some Stimpaks’s were placed in a small backpack that she slung over her shoulder. With a holster at her hip she loaded two weapons, as a baseball bat was put into the backpack as well. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Looking herself over in the small mirror she nodded in approval. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Her legs carried her to the door before stopping with her hand on the handle. Her eyes traced back to the form laying in her bed. She had decided to not tell him where she was going. She would be back, at least, she hoped she would. Nevertheless, she blew a kiss in his direction. She may be angry with him in this moment, but she knew it wouldn’t last. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Until next time...” </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. I Just Want To Be The One You Love</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Arthur’s eye floated gently open, a yawn rumbled from his mouth as he stretched his arms above his head. As his muscles relaxed he felt around the cotton sheets, reaching for the warm body he expected to be beside him. His fingers clawed at empty sheets. His eyes flew wide open as he sat up in the bed, looking frantically around. Lila was nowhere in the room. He threw his feet onto the floor and instantly ran to the armory. As he had feared, there were weapons and armour missing from the shelves and pegs in the closet. He reached for his clothes and quickly threw them on, checking his pockets. Sure enough, the inner pocket where he had kept her photobook was empty.</p>
<p>“Shit…,” he cursed softly under his breath.</p>
<p>He walked with purpose, his boots clanking along the metal. A knight stood at the end of the hall, Arthur quickly approached him.</p>
<p>“Have you seen Paladin Smith?” he asked with a sharp tongue. His heart was pounding away in his chest. He couldn’t quite pin whether it was due to anger or fear. The knight shook his head. This forced Arthur to continue on, asking any of the personnel he came across if she had been seen. Even Cade hadn’t seen her, urging Arthur that she should be found quickly.</p>
<p>Within the hour Arthur had a VertiBird ready and set for Diamond City. He figured if anyone knew where Lila may be, or at least where she had headed, it would be Piper. When the VertiBird touched down on the outskirts of the city, Arthur hopped off and made a bee-line for the main entrance. Once within the city walls he looked around. People milled about everywhere, but what caught his eyes was the young girl selling newspapers. He remembered hearing Piper had a sister that helped her with her paper.</p>
<p>“Excuse me, do you happen to know where your sister is?” he asked the girl in a gentle voice. Nat cocked an eyebrow at him and looked him over as she crossed her arms across her chest.</p>
<p>“What’s it to ya, fly boy?” she asked, voice dripping with sass. Arthur was taken aback for a second and his mouth hung slightly agape.</p>
<p>As if she heard the comment, Piper came from the nearby house and moved her way over to them.</p>
<p>“Nat! What are you doing? Don’t tell me you are being rude to the Elder of the Brotherhood…” Piper spoke as she sidled up to Nat, giving Arthur an apologetic look in the process. “How about you go in and have lunch and leave the adults to have a conversation.”</p>
<p>It was Nat’s mouth that was now hanging agape, she was about to rebut her sister but saw the stern look in her eyes and thought differently, turning to go inside without complaint. Once the door shut Piper turned back to Arthur.</p>
<p>“What can I do for you on this fine day, Elder?”</p>
<p>“Where is Lila?” he asked gruffly. He didn’t want to waste any more time than necessary. “I can’t find her. I saw her last night and then when I went looking for her this morning her room was empty and no one had seen her.”</p>
<p>“Did you think maybe she doesn’t want you knowing where she’s going?” Piper shrugged as she leaned nonchalantly against a nearby pole. Arthur clutched his fists tightly, not wanting to get mad. He wanted answers.</p>
<p>“Look, I’m concerned for her. She isn’t back to herself yet.”</p>
<p>“Concerned, are you? Surprising for someone who also went through her belongings and took something that wasn’t theirs.”</p>
<p>So she did know where she was, because obviously Lila had told her what she found. Arthur’s shoulders deflated slightly, a sigh leaving his lips as he looked at the ground.</p>
<p>“I shouldn’t have taken that, and I realize that. I just want to see her, apologize, and get her back to the Prydwen before something bad happens to her. Especially if she’s out there alone.”</p>
<p>A groan left Piper as she pushed herself off the pole and gave an eye roll in his direction.</p>
<p>“She is going to have my head for telling you this. But it is pretty obvious that you must care if you came here yourself and didn’t just send some of your minions to look for her. She’s in Sanctuary, said she had some business to take care of.” An actual smile cracked his lips as he clapped Piper on the shoulder and turned to leave.</p>
<p>“Thank you, Piper. I’ll make sure Lila won’t kill you for this.”</p>
<p>“Best of luck fly boy.” Piper yelled after him as he ran out of her view.</p>
<p>Arthur was positive he had never let his legs carry him so fast back to the VertiBird. He gave the pilot the coordinates and sat back as they took off, the wasteland landscape starting to whiz past. <em>Some business to take care of</em>. He didn’t know what that entailed, but he was hoping it was not as ominous as it sounded. He got the pilot to touchdown just outside the Red Rocket, allowing him to walk to Sanctuary without alerting Lila, or anyone else, that they were there. He instructed the pilot to head back to the Prydwen and that he would call when they needed a lift back.</p>
<p>Arthur walked up the hill and across the bridge, continuing into Sanctuary. The pre-war cul-de-sac was quite empty. The settlement that had been there previous had moved with the Minutemen to the Castle, leaving the homes to further decay and be taken over by foliage. He paused on the broken asphalt and listened carefully for signs of any movement.</p>
<p>There was a soft crackling coming from a long, rectangular, blue house at the top of the hill toward the end of the street. He moved toward it, as he got closer he recognized the crackling as a fire. The front door had fallen apart long ago and left the entry ajar. He entered the dilapidated home slowly, careful where he was stepping as there was debris and junk everywhere. He could see through to the backyard, where there was a drum with the fire licking out the top of it. Next to it, with her back turned toward him, was Lila. He came to the broken window at the back of the home and lifted his leg over the ledge and back out into the sun.</p>
<p>She didn’t move. Her hands clutched tightly at her side, gripping into the blue fabric of the Vault suit. Arthur approached slowly, not saying a word, but producing enough noise that it would be obvious that someone was there as he didn’t want to startle her. She didn’t even flinch. He came up alongside her but kept a gap between them. He turned his head to look at her. Her cheeks were red, tear-stained. Her eyes were blood-shot, rimmed with more tears. She looked so fragile he was almost scared she was going to fall to pieces in front of him.</p>
<p>“This was my home…” Lila’s voice broke the silence that stretched between them. Arthur decided to let her talk, letting her say what she needed to. “This is where I lived, before the bombs. This is where we took Shaun home. This is where I was supposed to be happy forever…”</p>
<p>************</p>
<p>The chilly November afternoon sun was beating down on her exposed forearms as she made the quick dash to the mailbox at the end of the front walk to retrieve what the postman had just placed there. After grabbing the hunk of mail she dashed back inside, not wanting to catch too much of a chill. Her floral tea-length skirt swished around her calves as she shut the door firmly behind her. Her hair was pulled into a high ponytail that bounced softly against her shoulder as she moved to the island and sorted through the letters. Most of them were bills or things for Nate. At the bottom of the pile was what she was looking for.</p>
<p>Once all the letters were tossed onto the tiles she clutched firmly at the leather bound book that remained. She clutched it tightly to her chest and squealed softly in excitement. Her hands fumbled with the cover but eventually functioned well enough to skim the pages. A couple months ago as a surprise she had decided to get boudoir photos taken for Nate. The photographer had offered to make them into a small book as a keepsake. Lila thought it was a great idea. Her and husband’s relationship had been far from ideal as of late. Since his return from the war he wasn’t the Nate she had known most of her life. She knew that war changed a person, but she held hope that things would return to something semi-normal now that he was more adjusted. Pressure from both of their families to have a baby hadn’t helped either. They couldn’t run into anyone without being asked why they hadn’t added to their family.</p>
<p>The thoughts had stung previously, but today Lila’s heart swelled. After so much trying, she was pregnant. She took the test that morning and was giddy to tell Nate when he got home from his meeting today. Since his return he had thrusted himself into working with veteran aid programs, trying to promote support for the people and the families that were affected by the war. The boudoir book coming today made it even better.</p>
<p>As if on cue, she heard the front door open and close behind her. She whipped around, putting her arms behind her to hide the book. A wide smile bursted onto her face.</p>
<p>“Hello honey how was your day?” she asked in a soft voice as Nate stepped into the kitchen and pulled off his coat, placing it on the back of the chair at the dining table.</p>
<p>“The usual. Same shit different day, it never changes.” His voice was rough and a tad slurred. “Had some people in from the city today. The head of the organization wanted them wined and dined to try and convince them to add to the family aid fund we are starting.” As he moved closer he planted a kiss firmly on her cheek, the lingering of whiskey on his breath. Her heart fell slightly, she didn’t enjoy when he drank much.</p>
<p>“Well I have some surprises for you that I hope will make your day better!” she continued with a cheery note to her voice as she watched him go to the fridge and grab a beer. She followed close behind as he went and sat on the couch. With her right hand she handed the book to him with a smile. “I really hope you like it.”</p>
<p>“You know I don’t read much,” he stated as he grabbed the book with a large hand.</p>
<p>“It isn’t exactly a reading kind of book,” she winked as she continued to stand in front of him.</p>
<p>Nate began to turn the pages over, his face taking many different emotions as he looked through it. “Who is this?” he asked with a soft chuckle, getting to the more risqué pictures toward the end.</p>
<p>“It’s me. Does it not look like me?” she asked and she craned her neck to try and look at the pictures a bit better from where she stood.</p>
<p>“Why would you do that? Who took them?” his voice was laced with bits of anger and confusion. Lila was taken back by the anger that edged into his voice.</p>
<p>“A photographer that a friend suggested. And I did it for you. I know we haven’t been as…intimate as we were before you left so I thought maybe this would be a nice way to remind you…”</p>
<p>“That my wife likes to show off for other men?” his voice raised when he spoke cutting her sentence off, jolting Lila slightly.</p>
<p>“What? No! Nate that isn’t in the slightest what I intended. The photographer was very professional and courteous.”</p>
<p>“Yet you still got naked in front of him?” Nate stood in front of her, anger very obvious on his face now.</p>
<p>“No, I’m not fully nude in any of those photos. The ones where I have no bra on I had a sheet over my chest the whole time!”</p>
<p>“I never thought you would go act like a whore while I was at work. Though, part of me is almost not shocked,” he seethed as he glared her down.</p>
<p>“Nate, you are being ridiculous. I wanted to do something nice, give you memento of me to have when I don’t look like this anymore.”</p>
<p>“You should stop talking Lila, I am not in the mood now.” He turned to walk away, toward the door.</p>
<p>“Nate, stop it,” she grabbed at his left hand as he passed her. Touching him had apparently been a very wrong thing to do. Before Lila could even flinch, he whipped around and whacked her face with the book and a strong hand. She blinked and her hand gently went to her face, gingerly touching where he had made contact with her face. She was too in shock to even cry. When she pulled her hand away there were small drops of blood that had come from her split lip.</p>
<p>After a few seconds her eyes flashed up to meet Nate’s, her shocked eyes looking back into his still furious brown eyes. He threw the book to the ground and continued on the way to the door.</p>
<p>“Wait Nate! Wait!” she called after him as he grabbed the door handle. It wasn’t the most opportune time but she couldn’t stop the words that came out of her mouth next as he flung the door open. “I’m pregnant.”</p>
<p>Nate whipped his head around and just stared at her. In that moment, Lila had never been through so many emotions. Happiness, to finally have a child with her husband. Sadness, at her husbands reactions. Anger, that her husband would think so low of her. But the main emotion she felt was the strongest of them all, and the one she hated the most. For the first time, in a very long time, she was scared.</p>
<p>************</p>
<p>Arthur stood in silence as she had told him about her life in this home. About the husband that she had always loved, despite the ways he treated her. About the heartbreak and happiness that occurred here. How it all started with hope and ended in despair. <br/>
“So the reason I came here was to see this place, one last time, and to burn this god forsaken book.” She turned the book over in her hands, not daring to look into it. “The woman in these pictures…I’m not her anymore. I wasn’t her anymore from the moment Nate hit me. From there and onwards, I guarded myself. In public, I was the perfect veterans’ wife. I smiled, I hung off his arm, I talked about how proud I was of him, I supported everything he did. People were so happy for us that we were finally having a baby. But when we were home and alone, we were distant, we weren’t a married couple anymore. We were more like roommates that just happened to be having a baby together. The woman in those pictures…she still had hope. She still loved her husband and worshipped the ground he walked on, despite it all. She wanted to make him happy no matter what. She wanted a family with him. She would do anything to get her husband back that she had lost when he left for war and came back a completely different man. I am no where near that woman anymore; I am a new me. I am not looking back.” <br/>
Tears fell down her cheeks as she looked at that book one more time. With an easy hand she threw it into the flames, letting the heat graze her hand before it fell back to her side. <br/>
Nothing needed to be said, but Arthur knew she needed comforting. He moved to her side and wrapped a secure arm around her shoulders. After a few seconds, he watched her face slowly crumple into sobs. He turned her into his chest and hugged her close, rubbing circles on her back as she cried. </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. bloodline</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lila clasped Arthur’s hand tightly as they walked slowly, and in silence, back toward the Red Rocket. The VertiBird had been called and would be there within the hour to pick them up and take them back to Prydwen. With the day more than half gone from tripping across the wastelands and the emotional toll of the last hour or so, Lila was more than ready for a warm meal and a nap. She was more than thankful that she hadn’t ran into anything troublesome on her way to Sanctuary. A few rad-roaches here and there, but nothing that could have dealt real damage to her. She was also beyond thankful that Arthur had shown up. She went there expecting to have the strength to do everything alone, but she had stood there for a solid half-hour before Arthur arrived just staring at the licking flames in the barrel. With everything out in the open she was easily able to let go of her past life and look to the future with purpose.</p>
<p>They came to a stop by the old truck stop and looked to the sky, the clipping of blades could be heard in the distance, but were still a bit of a ways off. Arthur took this opportunity and grabbed both sides of Lila’s face. His lips came roughly to hers, crushing them. After the initial shock had subsided, she leant into the kiss, lips moving against his in a steady rhythm. His short beard rubbed rough on the soft skin of her face as their mouths moved as one. A moment passed and he removed his lips, leaving their foreheads pressed together.</p>
<p>“I’m proud of you,” he said in a voice that was barely a whisper, intended for only her to hear. No one else was around them but he wanted to be sure she knew he meant it. A smile traced along her lips as one of her hands stroked along the lapel of his battle coat.</p>
<p>“Thank you. I’m proud of myself too.” Anyone else may have seen that as self-absorbed, but Arthur was happy she felt that way about herself finally. She deserved the best, and he hoped the best was yet to come for her. A soft rumble came from her stomach and she chuckled. “I am also very hungry.”</p>
<p>Arthur withdrew from her and laughed softly. “Well once we get back to the Prydwen you will get a nice hot, filling meal. I’ll make it myself if I have to.”</p>
<p>“Elder Maxson of the Brotherhood? Cooking?! That is something I would pay good caps to see in action,” she poked him with a sly, playful smile. He wanted to reply but the VertiBird was now close enough that it was making it difficult to talk over the roaring blades. It touched down gently across the asphalt from them. They quickly ran and jumped through the open door, leaving no reason for the VertiBird to stay touched down for long.</p>
<p>She watched the town of Sanctuary come back into view as they lifted above the ground, then as they made their way in the direction of the Prydwen it became smaller and smaller in her view. When she left Sanctuary the first time, when she came out of the Vault, she had a glimmer of hope but was mostly riddled with fear. This time as she left Sanctuary she felt a large amount of relief, a calming sort of peace surrounding her. Finally, she had come to terms with all the bad that had plagued her life, not only from her Pre-War life, but also since she woke up in this changed world. Sure, she had no idea where she was going from here. She was just happy to spend her time training again and spending what time she could with Arthur.</p>
<p>The flight seemed to take no time at all. The VertiBird attached to one of the docking spaces and powered down, the blades slowly whirring to a stand still. Arthur got out first and offered a hand to ease her out of the VertiBird and onto the metal walkway. They stayed side-by-side as they walked from the crisp outdoor air into the warmth of the Prydwen. As they got up to the flight deck and were about to round a corner they were met with a group of people. Heading up this group was Lancer-Captain Kells, stood with his hands clasped tightly behind his back.</p>
<p>“Ah, Elder. We were hoping you would be returning soon. There is an urgent matter that needs your attention,” Kells spoke in his usual “strictly business” tone. Arthur gave him a curt nod and turned to Lila.</p>
<p>“Paladin Smith, I have a matter to attend to. You are granted the remainder of the day off,” he spoke to her before being interrupted by an abrupt throat-clearing from Kells.</p>
<p>“Her presence is requested for this matter as well.”</p>
<p>Lila looked between Arthur and Kells, then to Cade and the other top-ranking staff that stood among the group. Her heart leapt into her throat, as her now clammy hands fidgeted at her sides.</p>
<p>“Very well then,” Arthur said in a rough, hushed tone as he led the group to the Command Deck.</p>
<p>Once everyone was in the room and the door firmly closed behind them Kells moved to the front of the room and looked out the window.</p>
<p>“We sent a progress report to the High Elders after the Institute was defeated. The report was very detailed and has allowed the High Elders to form some new plans and courses of actions for the Brotherhood of Steel within the Commonwealth.”</p>
<p>“That’s great. What do these plans entail?” Cade asked from where he was standing by the door.</p>
<p>“Much of the same as we have been doing. Keeping this area free of synths, keeping trade routes open for the people of the Commonwealth, and working closely with those factions that aline with our own; namely the Minutemen.”</p>
<p>“Is that it?” Arthur edged. There had to be something else, as this information could have been easily communicated to the high level members of the Prydwen without calling a meeting and waiting for Arthur to return.</p>
<p>“Not quite,” Kells responded as he turned back to face everyone in the room. “They are very, <em>very</em> interested in Paladin Smith.”</p>
<p>Everyone turned and looked at Lila. Her eyes darted to all the faces in the room and then fell to the floor. Her nerves were like live wires, buzzing loudly in her ears. “What do they want with me?” she asked in a soft voice, trying to mask the nerves that fluttered below the surface.</p>
<p>“They were unaware of the presence of Vault 111. They have been familiar with other Vaults and Vault dwellers, namely the Lone Wanderer. Something else they were unfamiliar with until this report was the existence of DNA that was Pre-War. They were very interested in the preservation that took place in this Vault. It appears the Institute wasn’t 100% wrong in their tactics. Utilizing unchanged DNA from Pre-War that was well preserved during the fallout is something the Brotherhood would be interested in obtaining.” As Kells talked he had moved closer and closer to Lila, finishing when standing about 3 feet in front of her.</p>
<p>“Lancer-Captain, my son was killed. The Institute was blown up. His DNA is useless. Anyone left in the Vault is by now contaminated since the seals broke on the chambers. I’m not sure I am following what is being said…” Lila looked at Kells and then over his shoulder to Arthur. “If they want DNA to analyze, I can give them samples, but what else could they possibly want?”</p>
<p>Kells turned and looked at Arthur and then back at Lila. “I think the rest of you can leave now. This is strictly business between myself, Paladin Smith, and the Elder.” Confused expression passed over everyone else’s faces as they turned to leave. “I will send a synopsis of the notes from the High Elders once we finish up here.”</p>
<p>Once the three of them were left alone on the Command Deck, Kells turned back to Lila.</p>
<p>“How much do you know about the Maxson lineage, Paladin.”</p>
<p>“Just whatever Elder Maxson has told me. I know it’s an old lineage, and he is the last remaining Maxson.” She kept her tone even, but confusion laced her expression as she watched Kells walk back and forth on the floor in front of her. Arthur stood against a nearby wall, a stone cold look on his face as his eyes also followed Kells.</p>
<p>“Correct. Elder Maxson is the last in the lineage that was started by the founder of the Brotherhood of Steel, Roger Maxson. It was founded in 2077, the same year the bombs were dropped. Now that the Elder has come of age, served well in battle, taken a high-rank position, and completed a high-risk mission the consideration of continuing the lineage is on the table.”</p>
<p>Arthur placed a hand on his right temple, rubbing softly at the starts of a stress headache. The continuing of the lineage had been thrusted upon him from a young age. Having no siblings meant it was on his shoulders, and his shoulders alone to find someone willing, and someone who could gain the approval of the High Elders, to continue the lineage. He had tried to put this off as long as possible.</p>
<p>“I understand all this, but what does this have to do with Paladin Smith?” Arthur asked as he continued to rub his temple and look at the floor.</p>
<p>“It has everything to do with Paladin Smith actually,” Kells responded as he turned again to look straight at Lila. “She has pure, non-radiated DNA. She is of peak physical body. She is well alined with the Brotherhood codes and beliefs. They are willing to look over the fact that she is the leader of another faction.”</p>
<p>Arthur suddenly realized what Kells was hinting at and his heart stopped in his chest. His stress headache melted away to leave a haze in his head. The room spun slightly as he waited for the realization to pass over Lila's face. What had dawned on him, had not dawned on her just yet. So Kells continued, looking her straight in the eyes.</p>
<p>“The High Elders think she is the perfect candidate to continue the Maxson bloodline with you Elder.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Three chapters left, one of which is an epilogue! <br/>Thank you all so much for reading this :) <br/>I want your suggestions as to what you want to see after this over. My plan as of right now is to write another fic, but it will not be Fallout related. It's actually probably going to be a Reylo fic (yeah I'm a Star Whore, fight me!). If there is something else you would like to see let me know! One-shots of Lila? A different fic completely? Reach out my loves &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. The Great Escape</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lila sat with her elbows balanced firmly on her knees as she watched Arthur pace back and forth in front of her. She held her jaw in her hands as she grinded her teeth, seething in tiny bouts of anger that were balanced with flashes of fear. They were back in his quarters following the meeting with Lancer-Captain Kells and she could not stop repeating the rest of the conversation in her head.</p>
<p>
  <em>“I’m sorry…excuse me? I’m not some breeding mare that you can purchase at a farm sale!” her voice rose in anger as she moved closer to Kells. </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>“I’m afraid you don’t have much of a choice. What else did you plan on doing? You should feel honoured to have the High Elders even suggest a thing.” Kells responded with surety, standing his ground. Lila wanted to smack the snide little grin off his face.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>“I believe Paladin Smith can make her own decision in the matter,” Arthur began before Kells cut him off with a hand raised. </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>“Elder Maxson, you knew this was coming at some point. You have showed no initiative in finding a wife, so the High Elder’s took it into their own hands.”</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Lila threw her arms down by her hips. “And what if I say no?” </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>“I wouldn’t suggest saying no. There are two ways it could go. One being they force you to leave the Brotherhood. The other, they just force you to do it. And the latter is looking more and more appealing to them, as they have already convinced many people that this would be the case.”</em>
</p>
<p>Arthur snapped her back into reality by grabbing her hand and making her look at him.</p>
<p>“Lila, you do not have to do this. We can find a way to get you out of this. I don’t want you to do anything forcefully. If there is even a sliver of you that doesn’t want to do this then you don’t have to.”</p>
<p>Her eyes borrowed into his, a deep conflict going on in her mind. She hated being controlled and having no control. She knew that would be her life if she gave into the High Elder’s request. She would be with Arthur but not in the way she had wanted. She would sit idly by, being the doting wife, being the ever-loving mother. A repeat of her Pre-War life. She would hang off his arms, possibly happy, but beaten to be the ideal wife, again. She thought she had just said goodbye to that lifestyle when she left Sanctuary, yet here it was again.</p>
<p>At the same time, she had grown to love Arthur again. He had become attentive, caring. She hadn’t the faintest clue where their relationship would go, but she was okay learning and growing and moving forward with him by her side. She just didn’t want to give herself up to do it.</p>
<p>“Arthur…I know the last time I said this things didn’t end well. But I have to say it to give myself a clear head.” Arthur gave a slow nod in response. A smile, small but still a smile, broke on her lips as she felt her eyes sting. “I love you. I fear I never stopped. Things got in the way and I did horrible things to myself, but I don’t think I stopped loving you. I would want nothing more than to have that fairy-tale, walk into the sunset, cliché happy ending with you. To grow with you and move forward with you, in any way possible.” Her voice cracked at the end, knowing she had to serve up the other half of that statement. “But I can’t go back to being someone’s pet, to being the obedient wife while I watch my husband change and become someone I don’t know. I won’t lose myself again.”</p>
<p>Arthur listened carefully as she spoke. His heart had swelled in the beginning and by the end was slowly breaking.</p>
<p>“Lila, I can’t lie to you.” He stopped himself for a second, debating whether the words should leave his lips. He couldn’t remember the last time he said them, but he knew that he felt them. “I love you,” his voice was sure and strong as he said them. Her smile came back and a soft, satisfying sigh left her lips as she heard him say those words. He continued on. “And I would want nothing more than to move forward with you by my side. But I could never ask you to live a repeat of your old life. I couldn’t stand by you and know I am the cause for sadness in your life. And that’s why I don’t want you to say yes to this offer. I want to help you get away from this.”</p>
<p>“You want me to leave?” she asked softly as she looked up into his eyes as he was crouched down in front of her. He cupped her cheek with his large hand, stroking at her cheekbone.</p>
<p>“I don’t want you to leave, no. But I have a feeling if you do stay we will be bothered and chased mercilessly. You’ll likely be forced into submission and I don’t want that for you. That’s why I want to get you away from here, so you have a chance to at least live a life of your own accord and not of someone else’s wishes.”</p>
<p>She nodded her head, letting herself come to terms with the fact that if she was going to say no to this proposal from the High Elders then there was no way she could stay in the Commonwealth area.</p>
<p>“I think I have an idea of where to go and who can help, you may not like it but they're my best bet of getting out of here safely.”</p>
<p>While the sun was still up the two of them worked quietly together to make a plan of escape. They made contact with everyone necessary via radio transmissions through the surrounding settlements. With the plan started, all they could do was wait for night to fall so they could leave the Prydwen. Lila had offered to go alone, but Arthur demanded to come with her to ensure her safety as much as possible before they parted ways. </p>
<p>Midnight came and the crew onboard mostly laid in rest while those on duty stood idly around. The likelihood that the usual knights and initiates standing guard had heard the intended plan for Lila was small, allowing escape to be a bit easier. Sure enough, Arthur easily forced those guards to look the other way as he made his way to a VertiBird with Lila. He hadn’t flown one in a while but he felt confident enough in his ability to get them to where they needed to go. Once they were gone, time would be of the essence. They would only have the time that the higher staff were sleeping, plus an hour or two, to ensure Lila was well on her way to escape.</p>
<p>The VertiBird touched down just north of Swan Pond. Arthur and Lila quickly left the scene, not wanting to wake Swan and wanting to get where they were going quickly. Being more familiar with the area Lila led the way east and slightly north. They dodged down quiet streets, avoiding any distractions in their path. Most of the Commonwealth still rested at night, excusing the few creatures who didn’t obey a normal time schedule and those standing guard outside clusters of Raiders and other groups.</p>
<p>Soon enough the neon sign came into view and Lila heaved a sigh of happy relief. It had been a while since she had been to one of her favourite spots in the Commonwealth. The Goodneighbour sign flickered in the pitch-black early morning hours. Glancing at her Pip Boy Lila registered that it was just after 1am. She threw the light blue door open and made her way through the main square. Sure enough, outside the Old State House were two of her favourite people in the Commonwealth. Arthur, in turn, saw two things that weren’t exactly human. A ghoulified man wearing a bright red coat, a tricorn hat, and the ole red, white, and blue tied around his waist. He didn’t even need him to open his mouth to know his voice was rough and crackling. The other person, he still didn’t consider a person. A broken, older model synth with glowing yellow, piercing eyes. A fedora perched perfectly on his head, giving an air of mystery to him while his voice lilted with a twang of a time gone past. As much as he may not consider them human, he knew that the two of them were Lila’s only chance of escape.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. The Next Right Thing</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila bounded over and into Hancock’s awaiting arms. He wrapped them securely around her and shook her back and forth. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Good to see ya again sunshine,” his gravely voice comes as she hears the scratch of his voice in his throat, his chest shaking with a soft chuckle. She pulled back and looked into his pitch black eyes and smiled at him. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“It’s great to see you Hancock.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She withdrew from his grasp and shifted to Nick, also wrapping her arms tightly around his midsection. Nick, a bit more formal on greeting than her and Hancock, gave her a couple gentle touches on the shoulder. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“It’s great to see you as well, Nicky.” She spoke, muffled into the lapels of his trench coat.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“It’s always fantastic to see you, doll.” He responded once she pulled herself off him. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur stepped up behind her and nodded to both the men.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Good evening gentlemen. Thank you for meeting us here on short notice, and for the help you’re about to offer. I honestly can’t thank you both enough.” Arthur had to admit, if it wasn’t for them Lila’s chances of making a successful escape were much slimmer.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“No problem, fly boy.” Hancock quirked with his hands on his hips. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Everyone else is inside. I suggest we get a move on if we want to do this properly and as safely as possible.” Nick redirected everyone’s attention back to the matter at hand. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila nodded and walked through the wooden double doors of the Old State House. Hancock gestured up the stairs to his office, the four of them moving up them. When they got through the door and were settled Lila looked around the room. Her heart grew warm with love and shattered with sadness all at the same time. All of her favourite people in the Commonwealth, all the people she knew she could rely, on were in that room. It made her smile despite the situation. She had come to make many meaningful and lasting friendships after she emerged into a new world from Vault 111. The fact that they all came together to help her made her thankful, but it also hurt that this could be the last time she would see some of them. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The first order of business was to deal with her position with the Minutemen. Since she was leaving for an undetermined time frame the position of General had to be passed on. She didn’t even have to think about who should get that role, it was obvious. Preston would take over as General of the Minutemen. He already cared so deeply for them and had basically taken over when Lila went AWOL after the battle at the Institute. Though he was reluctant, Preston took the offer with pride. He assured Lila that her men were in good hands and he would carry on until she could resume her position. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Next they had to focus on how the plan was going to be executed. As they were currently well on schedule, the hope was that Lila would leave from Goodneighbour with Nick and Hancock and begin the trek north to Far Harbour. Nick had a friend in the area that could possibly help them stay hidden for a while before likely moving on elsewhere. The Nomad lifestyle looked like it would be Lila’s way of life for some time, to ensure the Brotherhood wouldn’t find her if they decided to look. Hancock would stay with them only temporarily, acting mostly as another bodyguard as Lila still wasn’t completely back to herself. Once they were safely in Far Harbour, he would come back to the Commonwealth and Goodneighbour. It was also decided that communications continuing after Lila left would have to be minimized. Hancock had set up a safe terminal in the Memory Den, with him being the only person able to access it. Messages would be relayed through him in either direction. As expected, contact between Lila and Arthur would not be allowed. Any possibility of her being tracked to Far Harbour by the Brotherhood was to be avoided. With a rough plan in place and everyone in agreement, it was onto the last item on the list.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">This one was hands down the worst: saying goodbye. Preston went first, saying again that Lila had nothing to worry about and the Minutemen were in safe hands. They passed thanks between each other for keeping the Minutemen alive before they shook hands firmly. Preston left immediately after. Next was Piper. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She stepped up to Lila, but couldn’t look her in the eyes. Her boots scuffed against the floor as she tried to conjure up the words she wanted to say. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“When I first met you, I saw a good opportunity for me to get back in the City, a good story, and a great chance for an adventure. I never expected I was also meeting the person that would become my best friend. Blue...” Piper’s voice trailed off as tears began to fall down her cheeks. “I’m going to miss you like crazy,” as she finished she launched herself onto Lila, crushing her with a huge hug. Lila wrapped her arms around Piper’s shoulders, stroking at the jet black hair that fell below her cap. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m going to miss you too Pipes...” she barely managed to whisper into her friends ear. Piper pulled out of their embrace and wiped at her face vigorously, not wanting to make Lila more upset. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’ll try to keep Diamond City in line while you’re gone. And when you come back, you know where to find me.” As the reporter walks out the door she gives Nick a secure pat on the shoulder and tips her hat at everyone. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila turned and looked at the three men before her. She knew this next goodbye was going to be the hardest. A rickety sigh left her mouth as she managed a quirk of her lips. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Shall we start heading out?” she asked them. None of them spoke but they all nodded in agreement, waiting for her to be the first to move. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When they emerged from the Old State House the sky was still inky black, yet toward the east the first comings of light were stretching to the sky. She didn’t want to ruin the time remaining by looking at the clock on her Pip Boy.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">They had made the decision earlier that her, Nick, and Hancock would walk with Arthur back to the VertiBird. As they walked the streets of the city she used to call Boston, loneliness started to creep into her bones. She wouldn’t be alone, but she would be without Arthur. That left an already gaping hole in her and he was still just beside her. She had no idea how she was going to deal with saying goodbye. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Before she could even come up with a script to try and stick to they were on the edge of the clearing of Swan’s Pond. Nick turned and looked at her and Arthur. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“We are going to wait for you here. Take your moment to say goodbye to your fly boy, doll.” Nick’s semi-electronic voice snapped her out of her thoughts. Hancock offered a sympathetic smile. Lila looked to Arthur and gestured for him to lead the way back to the VertiBird. They made sure to walk as slow as they could, savouring these moments.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m sorry that this had to end this way.” Arthur spoke first, his voice more tender than she had ever heard. Her shoulder shrugged. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“We did all we could Arthur. Part of me wants to change my mind and say yes, but-“</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I wouldn’t let you do that. You wouldn’t be happy, and I can’t live with myself knowing I’m in part to blame for your unhappiness.” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“But I’m not happy now either,” she snapped as she turned towards him. They were about 10ft from the VertiBird now. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lila, at least in this case you have a chance at a better life. A life you have total control over. Who knows what might happen. You may get another chance at love-“</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I don’t want to love anyone else. There is no one in this world I want to love. I love you.” Her anger was still present in her voice, but her face was contorted in pain and the tears that fell from her eyes were those of absolute sadness.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur pulled her close and firmly to his chest. Sobs racked her body, shaking her small, still fragile, frame. His fingers twirled through her auburn hair before coming to rest under her chin. He pulled her gaze to his. Just a couple days ago he had analyzed her face in his mind, so he could keep it in his memories forever. He was so glad he did now. His thumb traced along her bottom lip as their eyes stayed drawn to each other like magnets. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Arthur leaned his head down to hers and pressed their lips together. This final kiss wasn’t hungry, it wasn’t desperate, it wasn’t laced with Chems. It was perfect in every way. Sensual, yet sweet. Firm, yet as soft as a cloud. Their lips remained together for a handful of seconds before they pulled apart. His thumb went back and chased away the tears on her cheeks. His forehead pressed to hers.</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I love you too, Lila. I hope our paths cross again my love.” There was a small tremorin his words, but he held himself together for her sake. One last quick embrace and she pulled back from him. She had to do it now or she never would let go. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I promise our paths will cross again Arthur.” She mustered a smile and looked over her towering man one last time before turning and walking back to Hancock and Nick. Her arms wrapped around herself, holding the pieces of her threatening to fall apart together. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When she was halfway back to Nick and Hancock, he called out to her one last time. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Wait!” </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Lila turned to look at him, auburn hair whipping across her shoulder. </span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Will you be okay?” He questioned her from where he stood. From that distance he could still see the smile break across her face at his question. Before turning back to finish the walk across the clearing she responded,</span>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’ll be okay.” </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>That was a doozy on the emotions to write :(<br/>We have the epilogue and that’s the end of this fic folks! Thanks so much for sticking around and reading it &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A radstorm ragged outside. The sky a hazy grotesque green, lightning shattering the length of the view, winds howling fiercely. With a exasperated sigh he turned around and looked at his empty room. His mind continued to wander as he sat down at his desk.</p>
<p>Since Lila had left things had changed quite a bit. As expected, when Arthur got back to the Prydwen in the early morning hours he was hounded by Kells as to the whereabouts of Paladin Smith. Arthur wouldn’t budge, claiming he had no idea where she had gone. For about a month following that there were recon teams out in all corners of the Commonwealth. Of course, they turned up empty handed. They never went anywhere close to Far Harbour to even catch a trail of where Lila was headed.</p>
<p>Once it was decided that the Paladin was a lost cause Kells immediately started dogging Arthur to start looking for a wife. To everyone’s annoyance, he couldn’t be bothered. He couldn’t have Lila so he didn’t want anyone. Instead, he thrusted himself into his work. Keeping on top of missions in the Commonwealth and even started visiting settlements and partaking in small ground missions. It kept him distracted and it kept him physically strong.</p>
<p>The odd time he would make a stop in Diamond City as him and a small team would need to replenish supplies. While there he always made sure to check in with Piper. Piper was her fiery self, hot on the trail of all the latest going-ons in the Commonwealth. He would pry here and there of any news from Lila, but the answer was usually that there had been no news. In one or two cases there was the usual “all is well” or complaints about Far Harbour itself, but nothing of substance.</p>
<p>Two years after she left the High Elders at the Citadel decided it was time for the Prydwen and Arthur to come home. They had established a substantial base at the Airport, where a small group of Brotherhood soldiers would stay in the Commonwealth to continue keeping the peace and recruiting new initiates. Arthur was reluctant to move back to the Citadel. He knew that meant taking over his position as High Elder, and a continuing barrage of people telling him to wife up and carry on the legacy.</p>
<p>Sure enough, within less than a week of returning to the Citadel and starting to settle into a routine, there was constant bothering of what he was planning on doing. He continued to ignore the jabs as best he could, he was only 23 and there was tons of time to think about that later. He much preferred to continue putting his work in the foreground of his life as a distraction.</p>
<p>Arthur had been sure that by the time five years had gone by that he would have long forgotten Lila. Yet she still haunted his dreams, both day and night. It wasn’t every single night, but it was at least once a month. A memory would conjure up scenes in his mind. He could see in vivid detail every aspect of her. The bright, deep, sparkling blue eyes that were framed by soft, freckled cheeks. A smile that made his heart warm. Flouncing, semi-curly auburn hair brushing gently on pale shoulders. Perfectly, imperfect body, hugged tight in a blue Vault suit most times. Other times, it was a bit more risqué. No matter what it was though, it left him aching for her.</p>
<p>Most people had given up on trying to convince him to keep looking for someone by the time the sixth year since Lila left had come. They figured either he was going to remain single forever or would come to it at his own pace.</p>
<p>It had now been just over eight and a half years since he saw her last that faithful day at Swan’s Pond. She had said that she would see him again, but he was starting to lose hope that that was going to happen at all. He had no clue where she was or what her life was like now. It was highly unlikely that she was still in Far Harbour, so there was no point in starting to look for her. She was good at hiding.</p>
<p>He hadn’t changed all that much in that time. Just on the verge of 30, there were a few wrinkles starting to make themselves obvious on his face. A few greys peeked into his hair here and there. He kept his physique well intact; he was thankful for that. Emotionally, he had become rough and rarely emitted much joy when he was in the company of others, or even while he was alone.</p>
<p>There was a knock on the door, the squire peeked around the corner of the slightly ajar door.</p>
<p>“Elder Maxson, there is someone here to see you. They are in The Great Hall,” the squire said with a small tremble in their voice.</p>
<p>“Who is it?” Arthur asked, he wasn’t in the mood to see anyone who wasn’t of importance.</p>
<p>“We aren’t sure. They asked for shelter from the radiation storm, claiming they know you.” Arthur rolled his eyes. He was hoping it wasn’t some wastelander pretending to know him so they could seek shelter.</p>
<p>“Fine. I’ll be there in a moment.” His annoyance was obvious as the squire left the room.</p>
<p>He had ditched the flight suit the moment he got off the Prydwen. The Citadel clothes were much more casual and comfortable. Grey pants clothed his long, muscular legs while an off-white button up shirt covered his chest and arms. Tall brown comabt boots adorned on his feet. He opted to keep wearing his brown battle coat over the usual blue long coat worn by the other Elders. The coat sat on the corner of his bed now, so he shrugged it on and looked into the mirror by his door. He looked good enough to meet his mysterious guest he figured.</p>
<p>The boots clunked firmly on the floor as he walked, making short time of the journey to A Ring from his room. Two knights stood on the outside of the door of the Great Hall. They nodded at him as he went through the door, making sure to shut it behind him to allow for privacy. When he surveyed the room the person he saw standing at the other side was the last person he had expected to see.</p>
<p>She no longer donned a bright blue Vault suit. It had been traded in for more practical clothing, just plain forest green pants with a matching long sleeve top. Harnesses for weapons were crossed along her chest, as well as a large belt slung on her hips. The same auburn hair remained, just a bit more frazzled and a bit greyer than the last time he saw it. Freckles still splashed across her face; a smile was spreading on her full lips. And those blue eyes were still as oceanic as ever.</p>
<p>“Hello Arthur,” Lila spoke from where she stood. Her voice shook in anticipation. She had no idea how he would react to seeing her. Would he be mad she took so long to show up? Would he be happy to finally see her? Would he be upset? Had he moved on and would now be embarrassed to see her?</p>
<p>Arthur stood there, stuck to where he was with his mouth hanging slightly agape. After a few more seconds he shook his head a bit, ensuring himself that this was in fact real and not another dream of his.</p>
<p>“Lila?” he asked, just to be sure again. A coy grin passed over her lips before she nodded her head at his questioning tone. That confirmation finally allowed him to move. He crossed the room in as few strides as possible before scooping her off her feet in a tight hug. Despite the years her body was still lithe, easy for him to crush into his arms. A tiny giggle left her chest as she wrapped her arms securely around his neck, glad to have confirmation that he was happy to see her. He set her back to the floor a few seconds after and began to cover her face in small kisses, starting on her cheeks and working to her forehead, to the tip of her nose, before planting a firm, sure kiss onto her lips.</p>
<p>“You came to find me,” he stated, with a slight questioning to his tone. She nodded.</p>
<p>“When I went back to the Commonwealth I was told that you had moved to the Citadel and were High Elder, so I figured it would be safe to come visit you.” He was so relieved to hear that she went back looking for him somewhere along the line. Their lips met again quickly as his hands balanced on her hips.</p>
<p>“Where is Nick? Did he stay in the Commonwealth? Don’t tell me you came all this way alone.” Arthur hated the thought of her braving that expanse of wasteland on her own.</p>
<p>“Nick did stay in Commonwealth. We made it back to Diamond City and he hopped right back into detective work, almost like he never left.”</p>
<p>“So, you did come alone? Lila, you need to be more careful,” he worried about her and stroked at her cheek gently, eyes still taking her in.</p>
<p>“I never said I came alone. I brought someone with me, it’s just not likely who you would expect me to be with.”</p>
<p>A puzzled look shadowed his face as she withdrew from his grasp for a moment, holding up a finger to signify that he should wait a minute. She walked out the door he had came in and around the corner. His feet stayed planted to where he stood, waiting to see what, or who, she went to fetch. Less than a minute later she came back around the door and pulled something behind her. Something was the wrong word he realized; it was someone.</p>
<p>Lila stepped back toward him with a small hand in hers. When she stood in front of him she gestured for the small person to come out from behind her. They finally gained confidence and stepped out from behind her and stared deep into Arthur’s eyes as they did so.</p>
<p>It was a child. Couldn’t be any older than nine or ten. A girl. Her deep brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail. A button nose sat in the middle of her face, pronounced by a splash of freckles. Dark, thick lashes rimmed her eyes, a bright sky-blue reflecting back at him. Arthur’s eyes darted back and forth between Lila and the girl, confusion was back on his face. Lila bit at her lip, holding back a nervous smile as she watched him.</p>
<p>“Can you say ‘hi’? And maybe tell him your name?” Lila turned to the little girl and let go of her hand, nudging her slightly. Arthur knew he could be intimidating so he knelt down on one knee to be somewhat level with the child.</p>
<p>“Hello, my name is Arthur. What’s your name?” he offered to her, hoping him speaking first would ease her to speak.</p>
<p>“I’m Arya,” the small, shaky, slightly unsure voice spoke to him. Arthur’s eyes darted back to Lila.</p>
<p>“Where did you find her? I didn’t see you as the type to pick up a child as a companion on the way.”</p>
<p>Lila’s face flushed, pink tinges on her cheeks. Her hand rubbed at her neck, avoiding his eyes for a second as she worked up the courage she had been trying to find since she made the decision to come here. Arthur stood back up from his crouched position and watched Lila carefully, trying to decipher her words as she spoke.</p>
<p>“I didn’t find her,” she spoke finally, Arthur’s eyebrows creased in confusion as he continued to stare her down. “She’s mine, I had her.”</p>
<p>Arthur was struck dumb for a second, mouth gone dry as his eyes kept training focus between her and Arya.</p>
<p>“How old is she?”</p>
<p>“She is going to be 8 in a couple months.” Lila could see the understanding in Arthur very slowly dawning, but she thought it best to confirm what was going unasked. “You’re her father.”</p>
<p>His heart stopped, then broke, then slowly stitched back together before swelling with prickles of love. This whole time he had a daughter and didn’t know. Part of him wanted to be mad that he never got to be there, for her and for Lila. Another part of him felt sad that Lila had been forced away from him in fear that the Brotherhood would demand she marry him and give up her freedom. Yet during that whole time she was carrying exactly what the Brotherhood wanted: an heir to the Maxson lineage. The overwhelming emotion in him was happiness. Happiness to see Lila, but also happiness at seeing a child that was his that he didn’t even know existed. Sure, he had missed a portion of her life, but she was here with him now.</p>
<p>“Why didn’t you say anything? You should have reached out to me; we could have figured this out together. You and her could have stayed safely here.”</p>
<p>“I didn’t realize I was pregnant until we were in Far Harbour for close to three months. By then it was too late and I was too scared. I was scared that my baby may just be taken from me. I would be giving the Brotherhood what they wanted, so why would they need me. I didn’t want a repeat of…,” her voice trailed off. The thought of Shaun still stung, she doubted it would ever stop. She didn’t want to lose another child to a faction that just wanted clean DNA. Arthur nodded his head, seeing what she meant and understanding her concern. “Once I found out that you were High Elder and were at the Citadel, I figured it was the opportune time to find you and tell you about her. I figured at least now there wouldn’t be a council of people telling you what to do.”</p>
<p>“You are right. There is a still a council of advisors, but I have the ultimate say and make the decisions.” Arya, who had been listening carefully and standing still between the two adults, looked up at Arthur and then back at Lila.</p>
<p>“So, this is my daddy?” her soft, childish voice broke the conversation immediately. Lila smiled down at her daughter and nodded; tears stung at her eyes. After years of telling her about her father and who he was and where he could be, Lila was overwhelmed with happiness that the girl could finally meet him. With the go-ahead from her mother Arya wrapped her arms securely around Arthur’s leg. He bent down and picked the little girl up, hugging her close as she threw her legs around his midsection. A few tears rimmed his eyes as he held his daughter for the first time, vowing then to cherish and care for her always. He wanted to make up for lost time with his family starting immediately.</p>
<p>Arthur opened one of his arms and pulled Lila into the hug. The small family finally, and for the first time, reunited. Lila let out a content sigh as she hugged Arthur and her daughter. A sigh that released all the tension she had felt since she left Vault 111. Finally, she felt at home. She felt like she belonged. She felt like she found her place. Arthur kissed her cheek and whispered into her ear.</p>
<p>“Welcome home.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you all 100 times over for reading this fic! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! I am sad to let go of Lila, but stay tuned for more from me soon (hopefully)!<br/>Much love &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>